Department for Transport

Transport: Infrastructure

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to tackle funding disparities in transport infrastructure between North and South England.

Jesse Norman: The Government is carrying out the biggest investment in transport in the North for a generation, and remains committed to ensuring that the whole country gets the transport infrastructure that it needs. Most recently, on 2 October, the Government announced an additional £100m for local road schemes in the North to tackle congestion pinch-points and speed up journeys, while an extra £300m will help push forward plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail to bolster links between Northern towns and cities with more frequent and faster services. The Government is already providing better rail journeys through the Great North Rail Project, new Northern and TransPennine franchises, and High Speed 2, the first new North-South railway in this country for over a century. This will greatly increase capacity and connections for millions of people, with high speed stations in Manchester, Leeds, Crewe and Sheffield.

Transport: Public Expenditure

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what funding from the public purse his Department has allocated to transport per head of population in (a) the North East, (b) Greater London and (c) the South East.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport does not allocate funding to transport on a per head of population basis. Investment decisions are made based on a rigorous and fair appraisal process that ensures spending goes to the projects and programmes where it is most needed. As the Department emphasised in the Transport Investment Strategy, investment decisions should reflect a clear understanding of the particular needs of the country. The Department would value more involvement from regional transport bodies, such as Transport for the North, in deciding how best to invest in transport in their region.

London-Brighton Railway Line: Repairs and Maintenance

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Written Ministerial Statement of 20 July 2017, HCWS160, on rail infrastructure funding: 2009-24, whether the upgrade of the Brighton Mainline is one of the new enhancement schemes for which funding will be available for early-stage development; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Maynard: The Government recognises the importance of the Brighton Mainline upgrade proposals, which are at an early stage of development. We will continue to support Network Rail in further developing and refining the proposals, including identifying any development funding that is required during the period 2019-2024.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the options under consideration in the European Commission's consultation on the REFIT review of Directive 2009/103/EC on motor insurance; and what representations he is making to the (a) European Commission and (b) his EU counterparts on that matter.

Jesse Norman: The Department’s priority for the REFIT review is the correction of the scope of the Directive following the Vnuk judgment, such that it only applies to motor vehicles used in traffic. We collaborated with like-minded Member States to write a letter to the Commissioner putting forward this view. The Department continue to encourage UK stakeholders to talk with their counterparts in Europe. The Department is otherwise broadly content with how the Directive works but have made minor suggestions for improvement.

Railways: Freight

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he plans to take to ensure that new rail freight terminals are appropriately sited to benefit the national economy.

Paul Maynard: The National Networks National Policy Statement (NN-NPS) sets out Government’s policy for Strategic Rail Freight Interchange (SRFI) development. It states the importance of SRFIs being located near the business markets they will serve – major urban centres, or groups of centres. The NN-NPS states that to facilitate modal shift from road to rail, a network of SRFIs is needed across the regions to serve regional, sub-regional and cross-regional markets with good connectivity with both the road and strategic rail freight network.

East Midlands Rail Franchise

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress is being made on finalising the East Midlands rail franchise.

Paul Maynard: The public consultation for the next East Midlands franchise closed on 11 October and we are currently analysing the responses we have received. Once complete, that analysis will help inform the specification of the new franchise. We expect to issue the Invitation to Tender to bidders in April 2018.

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Road Investment Strategy: for the 2015-16 to 2019-20 Road Period, which of the projects announced have (a) been completed, (b) been cancelled, (c) faced changes to their completion date and (d) experienced increases in their costs; which of the projects (i) will be completed by 2020, (ii) will have started before 2020 and (iii) will neither have started nor be completed before or by 2020, broken down by region; and in which regions those projects have been conducted.

Jesse Norman: Highways England published their updated Delivery Plan 2017-2018 on the 19th October 17 which showed that 12 projects had been completed by 2016-2017. Since then a further 6 schemes have been completed giving a total of 18 schemes completed to date. The additional 6 schemes are:A30 Temple to CarblakeSouth WestM3 junctions 2-4aSouth East and LondonA21 Tonbridge to PemburySouth East and LondonM5 junctions 4a-6MidlandsA43 Abthorpe junctionMidlandsA5/M1 junction 11a linkMidlands Information regarding the status of the other road schemes in the Road Investment Strategy can be found in the updated Delivery Plan at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/highways-england-delivery-plan-2017-to-2018 . Any cost increases to specific schemes will be balanced across the overall capital investment programme.

Home Office

British National (Overseas): Passports

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many valid British National Overseas passports are currently in issue.

Brandon Lewis: The number of valid British National Overseas passports in circulation as of 31 of December 2016 was 152,351.

Domestic Violence

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many incidents of domestic violence were reported to police authorities in England and Wales in each of the last three years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Office for National Statistics publishes information on the number of incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police. This information is published in a cross government statistical bulletin ‘Domestic abuse in England and Wales: year ending March 2016’, which can be found here: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/domesticabuseinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2016

Emergency Services Network

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the monthly cost to the public purse is of the delay in the roll-out of the new Emergency Services Network for (a) charges to Airwave and (b) any other costs.

Mr Nick Hurd: The costs of upgrading to the Emergency Services Network and the costs to extend Airwave contracts for the emergency services are available in the public domain at: https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Upgrading-emergency-service-communications-the-Emergency-services-Network.pdf and https://www.london.gov.uk/moderngov/documents/b15926/Minutes%20-%20Appendix%201%20-%20Transcript%20of%20Item%205%20Tuesday%2018-Jul-2017%2010.00%20GLA%20Oversight%20Committee.pdf?T=9 Any delay in rollout impacts the date by when the savings from ESN will start to be realised. These savings will represent 50% of the cost of Airwave. The cost of delay is therefore the opportunity cost of not being able to realise the cost savings of ESN sooner. Up to the end of 2016/17, the Programme has already delivered £77m of cash releasing benefits on existing Airwave contracts. These are benefits that would not have been obtained under the previous contractual agreements.

Emergency Services Network

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate she has made of the cost of the upgrade to the Emergency Services Network; and how much of that cost will be incurred by police forces.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment her Department has made of whether it will be possible to extend Airwave beyond March 2020.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government plans to commence the transition from Airwave to ESMCP in December 2017.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of whether there will be a gap between the complete roll out of the Emergency Services Network and the shutdown of the Airwave system.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she plans to exercise the provision in the Airwave emergency services contracts to extend the contracts beyond the national shut down target date of 31 December 2019; and what estimate she has made of the monthly cost of exercising that provision.

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, when she expects the Emergency Services Network to come into force.

Mr Nick Hurd: The new Emergency Services Network (ESN) will provide the dedicated teams who work so hard protecting the public and saving lives with the most advanced communications system of its kind anywhere in the world. There will be no risks with public safety and there will be no gap in the emergency services’ communications provision. It will ultimately be for the emergency services themselves to confirm they are content with the new ESN service, as the existing Airwave system will continue until transition on to the ESN is completed. The Airwave network will remain operational until the emergency services have transitioned to using the new Emergency Services Network. The current agreement with Motorola can be extended equally for a fixed price per region per month. The regional extension price enables the Government to only buy additional Airwave service for those regions requiring the service for longer. In terms of funding of future ASL contract extensions falling to the police service in England and Wales, these decisions will be subject to ministerial consideration at that time as part of the annual police finance settlement. In respect of costs to police forces I can confirm that the Home Office contributes 75% of the costs of setting up and operating the core network element of ESN to reflect the policing (England and Wales) share of the joint emergency service programme. This share of Core costs is met through a reallocation within the police funding settlement. Police & Crime Commissioners will meet certain local costs, such as new handsets for officers, from their general budgets as they do now. This is cutting-edge technology, and the Programme has always been clear that it will not take any risks with public safety. The emergency services will transition when they consider the network ready. Greater clarity on the date ESN will be available is likely to be understood by the end of the year. The costs of upgrading to the Emergency Services Network and the costs to extend Airwave contracts for the emergency services are available in the public domain at: https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Upgrading-emergency-service-communications-the-Emergency-services-Network.pdf and https://www.london.gov.uk/moderngov/documents/b15926/Minutes%20-%20Appendix%201%20-%20Transcript%20of%20Item%205%20Tuesday%2018-Jul-2017%2010.00%20GLA%20Oversight%20Committee.pdf?T=9

Visas

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to resolve the delays in processing settlement visa applications; and whether those delays are caused by staff shortages.

Brandon Lewis: Settlement applications may be made overseas and in the UK. The percentage of straightforward out of country settlement visa applications which were completed within Service Standard was 96.5% in the first quarter of 2017 (against a target of 98.5%).Whilst some cases have fallen outside the standard processing timescales, there are currently plans and resourcing in place to resolve outstanding cases and we expect that there will be a sustained improvement from this point onwards. The Home Office endeavours to resolve all applications as promptly as possible, however it is also vital that the correct decisions are made, particularly with complex cases that require detailed consideration and verification of evidence. If an application is not straightforward and expected to take longer than the standard processing time, UKVI will write to the customer within the standard processing time and explain what will happen next.The published information on processing times for visa applications is published as part of the Migration Transparency data, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-operations-transparency-data-august-2017

Terrorism

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of membership of a proscribed organisation under section 11 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of possessing an article for terrorist purposes under section 57 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of wearing a uniform under section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of supporting a proscribed organisation under section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of directing a terrorist organisation under section 56 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of finance and money laundering in relation to terrorism acts under sections 15, 16, 17 and 18 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of weapons training under section 54 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of collecting information under section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of providing or receiving instruction or training for terrorism under section 6 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of the encouragement of terrorism under section 1 of the Terrorism Act 2000 in each year since 2000.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of disseminating terrorist publications under section 2 of the Terrorism Act 2006 in each year since 2006.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of attendance at a place for terrorist training under section 8 of the Terrorism Act 2006 in each year since 2006.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people have been (a) charged with, (b) prosecuted for and (c) convicted of preparing acts of terrorism under section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006 in each year since 2006.

Mr Ben  Wallace: The Home Office publishes data on the number of persons charged, prosecuted and convicted, following an arrest for a terrorism-related offence, in the quarterly ‘Operation of police powers under the Terrorism Act 2000 and subsequent legislation’ statistical release. Data, broken down by the legislation under which an individual is charged/prosecuted/convicted, are available from 11 September 2001, when the data collection began. The data can be found alongside the release in the accompanying data tables, which can be accessed here:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/operation-of-police-powers-under-the-terrorism-act-2000 Data on charges of those arrested for terrorism-related offences can be found in table A.05a and data on convictions can be found in table A.08a; these data are supplied by the National Counter Terrorism Police Operations Centre. Data on prosecutions of persons for terrorism-related offences can be found in table C.02, which contains data provided by the Crown Prosecutions Service Counter Terrorism Division (data available since July 2010). The data are based on the principal offence rule, whereby when an individual is charged/convicted/prosecuted for more than one offence at a time, only the most serious offence is counted in the data.

Home Office: Telephone Services

Jim McMahon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many 0345 telephone numbers are in use by her Department; and how much revenue has been generated by each such telephone number in each year since 2010.

Sarah Newton: The Home Office has one 0345 telephone number in use. The number came into effect in 2014 and no revenue has been generated by this number since its introduction.

Housing: Fire Prevention

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many home fire safety checks were completed by fire and rescue services in (a) 2014-15, (b) 2015-16, (c) 2016-17 and (d) 2017 to present.

Mr Nick Hurd: Data on the number of home fire safety checks made by Fire and Rescue Services (FRSs) in England are published in fire statistics data table 1201 which accompanied the “Fire and rescue authorities: operational statistics bulletin for England 2015 to 2016” – the release is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fire-statistics#fire-and-rescue-authorities-operational-statistics:-latest-version

Extradition: Bangladesh

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many UK citizens have been extradited from Bangladesh to the UK in each year since 2010.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many UK citizens have been extradited from India to the UK in each year since 2010.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average length of time for extradition proceedings was for UK citizens extradited from India to the UK in each year since 2010.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average length of time for extradition proceedings was for UK citizens extradited from Pakistan to the UK in each year since 2010.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many UK citizens have been extradited from Pakistan to the UK in each year since 2010.

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average length of time of extradition proceedings was for UK citizens extradited from Bangladesh to the UK in each year since 2010.

Mr Nick Hurd: Since 2010, no UK citizens have been extradited to the UK from India. One UK citizen has been extradited from Pakistan; extradition took place in 2016 and the request was made in 2013. One UK citizen has been extradited from Bangladesh; extradition took place in 2010 and the request was made earlier the same year.

European Arrest Warrants

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many European arrest warrants for UK citizens were outstanding at 1 September 2017.

Mr Nick Hurd: Statistics on the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) are published by the National Crime Agency each year. These figures include the number of EAWs issued or received by the United Kingdom, the number of arrests made under an EAW and the number of surrenders made under an EAW either to or from the UK. These figures are published at: http://www.nationalcrimeagency.gov.uk/publications/european-arrest-warrant-statistics

Metropolitan Police: Newham

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of police officers in the Metropolitan Police Service worked in the London Borough of Newham in each year since 2010.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects and publishes statistics on the number of police officers employed by each police force in England and Wales on a bi-annual basis. These data are published in the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletins, which can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-workforce-england-and-wales-31-march-2017 The Home Office does not collect this information at borough level. Data on the number of police officers in Metropolitan Police Service, as at 31 March each year, can be found in the Open Data Tables accompanying the main release: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/629362/open-data-table-police-workforce.ods

Refugees: Children

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many unaccompanied migrant children in the UK have been moved to at least two different local authorities since their arrival.

Brandon Lewis: The Home Office does not currently publish data on unaccompanied migrant children’s movements between local authorities in its quarterly statistics release.The published data on unaccompanied asylum seeking children can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-april-to-june-2017/how-many-people-do-we-grant-asylum-or-protection-to#unaccompanied-asylum-seeking-children.There are over 4,000 unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) in local authority care in the UK. The National Transfer Scheme was launched on 1 July 2016 and has been working to ensure a fairer allocation of UASC across the UK. A significant number of local authorities have participated in the scheme and enabled the transfer of children away from local authorities with a disproportionate number of UASC in their care.

Refugees: Children

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of closing the refugee camp in Calais on the availability of data on unaccompanied child refugees; and if she will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: The primary responsibility for unaccompanied children in France lies with the French government. Following the closure of the Calais Camp, French authorities transferred all children formerly resident to specialist centres across France. It is vital that children claim asylum in France; that is the fastest route to safety.  We have a strong track record of cooperating with France to manage the situation in Calais and to protect our shared border. We supported the humanitarian operation to clear the Calais migrant camp in October 2016, which involved the transfer of more than 750 children to the UK and funding to help provide migrants in Calais – including children – with suitable facilities elsewhere in France. Our law enforcement agencies work closely together totackle smuggling and trafficking. Home Office officials meet with their French colleagues on a regular basis. According to Eurostat data, 63,300 unaccompanied children claimed asylum in the EU in 2016:http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/8016696/3-11052017-AP-EN.pdf/30ca2206-0db9-4076-a681-e069a4bc5290 This includes a breakdown of asylum applications by EU Member State.

Visas: Married People

Afzal Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) average and (b) longest waiting time was for non-straightforward spousal visa applications in each quarter of each of the last five years.

Brandon Lewis: The published information on processing times for visa applications is published as part of the Migration Transparency data, available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-operations-transparency-data-august-2017

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Consumer Advice, Protection, Standards and Enforcement for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Independent Review

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to ensure transparency in the appointment of members to the Each Home Counts steering group and implementation board.

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to make available the minutes of the Each Home Counts implementation board.

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when the Chair of the Each Home Counts implementation board last met  representatives of the heating industry.

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to ensure that there is no conflict of interest for individuals leading work streams under Each Home Counts.

Claire Perry: Each Home Counts was an independent review, led by Dr. Peter Bonfield, which published its report in December 2016. Implementation of Each Home Counts is being led by industry with the support of Government, in line with the recommendations of the review. Appointments to the Implementation Board and steering groups are made by industry where members provide expertise from across the sector, reflecting the scope of recommendations identified by the review. Board members participate on a voluntary basis, and receive no remuneration for doing so. The Board has encouraged constructive stakeholder participation and a broad range of industry stakeholders have been involved in Each Home Counts, including representatives from the heating sector. The Chair of the Board last met representatives of the heating industry on 6 July and is due to meet them again on 24 October.All members of the Implementation Board and workstream leads are required to declare any conflicts of interest. Where conflicts are identified individuals are excluded from any decision making process in which they would have an actual or perceived conflict. Due to the independent nature of the Implementation Board, it would be for the Chair and members to consider sharing minutes of their meetings. Information about Board meetings is shared with stakeholders in the fortnightly Each Home Counts newsletter.

Companies: Ownership

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what progress has been made by HM Revenue and Customs to pursue companies that have not registered their beneficial ownership with Companies House; and how much has been collected in fines from such companies.

Margot James: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

BAE Systems: Redundancy

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of BAE Systems job losses, announced in October 2017, on the UK's capacity to produce aircraft and aviation systems.

Claire Perry: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Office for Nuclear Regulation

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has made an impact assessment of the (a) implementation of a domestic safeguards regime and (b) undertaking other roles fulfilled by UK membership of Eurtatom by the Office for Nuclear Regulation.

Richard Harrington: A full Impact Assessment is being undertaken on the Nuclear Safeguards Bill, which will create the legal framework for a domestic nuclear safeguards regime following the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from Euratom. This Impact Assessment will assess the options for and implementation of a domestic nuclear safeguards regime following withdrawal from Euratom. Besides new responsibilities in respect of the new domestic nuclear safeguards regime, we do not anticipate the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) undertaking additional responsibilities as a result of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from Euratom. The Department is in regular discussions with the ONR to ensure that they will be in a position to take on the role and responsibilities required to help ensure the UK’s domestic civil nuclear safeguards regime meets our international safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation obligations standards upon leaving Euratom.

Office for Nuclear Regulation

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the workforce capacity of the Office for Nuclear Regulation to undertake the safeguarding programmes currently undertaken by Eurtatom.

Richard Harrington: The Department is working closely with the Office for Nuclear Regulation to ensure that they will be in a position to take on the role and responsibilities required to help ensure the UK’s domestic civil nuclear safeguards regime meets international safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation standards upon leaving Euratom. The Office for Nuclear Regulation are already recruiting inspectors and increasing their capacity to carry out this new role, and we are confident that adequate capacity will be in place following withdrawal from Euratom.

Office for Nuclear Regulation

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what funding his Department plans to make available to the Office for Nuclear Regulation to enable it to take responsibility for the nuclear safeguarding role currently undertaken by Eurtatom.

Richard Harrington: The Department will allocate to the Office for Nuclear Regulation the funding necessary to set up a domestic civil nuclear safeguards regime.

Coal

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what estimate his Department has made of the amount of coal required to manufacture the (a) cement and (b) iron and steel required to construct (i) Hinckley Point power station, (ii) the third runway at Heathrow and (iii) Crossrail 2; and if he will make a statement.

Richard Harrington: The Department has not undertaken an analysis of the amount of coal that will be needed to manufacture the cement, iron and steel needed to construct Hinckley Point power station, the third runway at Heathrow and Crossrail 2.

Pregnancy: Discrimination

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, with reference to the Government response to the First Report of the Women and Equalities Committee of Session 2016-17, Pregnancy and maternity discrimination, published on 26 January 2017, Cm 9401, when he plans to implement the Government's commitment to bring forward proposals to ensure that those protections in place for women who are pregnant or returning from maternity leave are sufficient.

Margot James: Protection already exists through the Maternity and Parental Leave etc Regulations 1999. Where redundancy means that it is not practicable to continue to employ a woman on maternity leave under an existing contract, Regulation 10 requires an employer to offer appropriate alternative employment on terms which are not substantially less favourable. We are considering the implications of extending this right into the period when a new mother returns to work and into the period while she is pregnant and at work. In terms of initial consultation, we have also sought the views of the Alliance for Maternity Rights on other potential proposals.

Fracking

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will take steps to ensure that his decision on hydraulic fracturing consent applications, and the assessments made to support it, are published.

Richard Harrington: The majority of information contained in a hydraulic fracturing consent application will already be in the public domain. The Department plans to publish its response, as appropriate, and in line with its obligations under the Environmental Information Regulations.

Energy: Billing

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department holds information on the proportion of energy customers on standard variable tariffs who are also in receipt of the winter fuel payment for each of the last seven years.

Margot James: The Department does not hold data on the tariffs paid by those in receipt of winter fuel payments. The Department estimates the proportions of all customers who are on variable tariffs, in the table below; data prior to 2013 is not available.YearProportion of customers on variable tariffs201380%201474%201571%201668% Data are published in Quarterly Energy Prices in tables, 2.4.2 and 2.5.2 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/quarterly-domestic-energy-price-stastics

Energy: Debts

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the level of personal debt associated with unpaid energy bills; and if he will make a statement.

Margot James: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Small Businesses: Billing

Neil O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps the Government is taking to tackle incidents of late payments to small and medium-sized enterprises by larger businesses.

Margot James: The Government knows how important tackling late payment is, especially for smaller businesses. We have recently introduced a number of measures to improve payment practices, specifically for small and medium-sized enterprises.The Reporting on Payment Practices and Performance Regulations 2017 came in to force this year. This statutory requirement increases transparency, providing small and medium-sized businesses with better information about the payment practices of large businesses they intend to trade with.The recently announced Small Business Commissioner builds on a package of measures to tackle late payment and unfavourable payment practices in the private sector. The Commissioner will empower small businesses to resolve payment disputes with larger businesses and avoid future issues by encouraging a culture change in payment practices and how businesses deal with each other.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Trade Agreements

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many officials employed in his Department in June 2016 had substantial experience of international trade negotiation.

Mark Field: A significant proportion of FCO officials, both in the UK and overseas, have worked on roles relevant to the prosperity agenda, within which international trade is included. The FCO is also investing further to equip its and other HMG staff with the necessary skills through the Trade Policy and Negotiations Faculty of the Diplomatic Academy​.

Israel: Arms Trade

Jared O'Mara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the humanitarian effect on Palestinians of UK arms sales to Israel.

Alistair Burt: ​While we have not made any assessment on this issue, the Government takes its defence export responsibilities extremely seriously and operates some of the most robust export controls in the world. We only approve equipment which is for Israel's legitimate self defence and where we are satisfied it would be consistent with the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria and other relevant commitments. We continue to assess the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and take into account the latest circumstances when assessing licence applications.

Palestinians: Refugees

Jared O'Mara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on Palestinian refugees' right of return to Israel and the Occupied Palestian Territories.

Alistair Burt: The Government's policy is that the question of the right of return of Palestinian refugees needs to be addressed in a final status agreement, negotiated between the two parties, and including a just, fair and agreed settlement for refugees.

Israel: West Bank

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to make representations to the Government of Israel on the demolition of the two Palestinian West Bank villages at Khan Al Ahmar and Susiya.

Alistair Burt: ​The Government remains gravely concerned about continued demolition of Palestinian property by the Israeli authorities including proposals to demolish the Bedouin villages of Khan al-Ahmar and Susiya.The UK continues to call on the Israeli authorities to halt proposals to demolish Khan al-Ahmar and Susiya. Prior to the most recently scheduled Israeli High Court hearing about Khan al-Ahmar on 25 September –subsequently postponed - our Embassy in Tel Aviv raised our concerns with the Israeli authorities on 24 September. The Foreign Secretary expressed our concern about the proposals when he met Prime Minister Netanyahu in Israel on 8 March.

Mohammed Awad

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Israeli Government on Mohammed Awad's application for an exit visa to study at a university in the UK.

Alistair Burt: Whilst we sympathise with Mr Awad, we are unable to intervene in his case. Due to the high number of such cases, we do not intervene as a general rule in cases regarding non-British nationals, with few exceptions such as in certain circumstances of extreme humanitarian need.The Foreign and Commonwealth Office regularly raises the issue of delay and refusal of exit permits with counterparts in the Israeli government. We have lobbied at the highest levels on easing restrictions on movement, including the Foreign Secretary to Prime Minister Netanyahu in August 2017. We are also concerned about the closure of the Rafah crossing and strongly encourage Egypt to show maximum flexibility on opening the crossing.

British Nationals Abroad: Detainees

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how his Department determines whether a British national has been arbitrarily detained abroad.

Rory Stewart: In answer to both PQ 107608 and PQ 107609, from the moment a British National is detained abroad in any circumstances, we have a clear process for providing assistance. Once we are notified of their arrest and/or detention, we aim to make contact with the individual as soon as possible and ensure their access to legal advice and medical assistance if needed. We can offer basic information about the local legal system, including whether a legal aid scheme is available. We can also provide a list of local interpreters and lawyers. Whilst HMG cannot interfere in the internal affairs of a country, we can intervene on behalf of a British national under certain circumstances to try and ensure fair treatment, including when we have concerns over their health, welfare, human rights or unlawful or unjustifiable discrimination.We apply internationally-accepted human rights standards to consider whether a British national has been arbitrarily detained. We work with a detainee's local lawyer when considering if a detainee is not being treated in line with internationally-accepted standards. This may include if there is no legal authority to arrest or detain, if a trial does not follow internationally recognised standards for a fair trial or is unreasonably delayed compared to local cases. We will consider approaching the local authorities if it appears that internationally accepted standards have not been met. We consider all interventions on a case by case basis.

British Nationals Abroad: Detainees

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assistance his Department provides before, (b) during and (c) after trial to UK nationals who are arbitralily detained abroad.

Rory Stewart: In answer to both PQ 107608 and PQ 107609, from the moment a British National is detained abroad in any circumstances, we have a clear process for providing assistance. Once we are notified of their arrest and/or detention, we aim to make contact with the individual as soon as possible and ensure their access to legal advice and medical assistance if needed. We can offer basic information about the local legal system, including whether a legal aid scheme is available. We can also provide a list of local interpreters and lawyers. Whilst HMG cannot interfere in the internal affairs of a country, we can intervene on behalf of a British national under certain circumstances to try and ensure fair treatment, including when we have concerns over their health, welfare, human rights or unlawful or unjustifiable discrimination.We apply internationally-accepted human rights standards to consider whether a British national has been arbitrarily detained. We work with a detainee's local lawyer when considering if a detainee is not being treated in line with internationally-accepted standards. This may include if there is no legal authority to arrest or detain, if a trial does not follow internationally recognised standards for a fair trial or is unreasonably delayed compared to local cases. We will consider approaching the local authorities if it appears that internationally accepted standards have not been met. We consider all interventions on a case by case basis.

Yemen: Politics and Government

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the political and security situation in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: The Saudi-led Coalition continues to seek to reinstate the legitimate government in Yemen and defend its own southern border against artillery and missile strikes by Houthi forces and those allied to former President Saleh. The conflict sees skirmishes and sporadic fighting in a number of areas in western Yemen, including along the Saudi border, around Midi, north east of Sana'a and in the vicinity of Sirwah. We remain concerned by the ability of terrorist organisations such as Al Qaeda and Daesh to exploit ungoverned spaces in Yemen. The conflict has also resulted in security threats to international shipping in the Bab-el-Mandeb. Reinstating peace talks remains the top priority: a political solution is the best way to bring stability to Yemen and address the worsening humanitarian crisis. The UK continues to play a leading role in international efforts to achieve this goal. The Yemeni parties must engage constructively and in good faith to find a political solution to end the conflict.

Yemen: Terrorism

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to degrade Al-Qaeda and ISIS in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: The conflict in Yemen has allowed terrorist organisations like Al-Qaeda and Daesh to establish themselves and spread their message of violence and extremism. They continue to pose a threat to Yemen, the region and beyond. As the UK no longer maintains a presence on the ground in Yemen, we are working with partners to monitor the threat from these organisations and disrupt any attack planning. In the longer term, an enduring political settlement, strong security institutions and effective governance will be needed to deny terrorist organisations the space in which to operate.

Counter-terrorism

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to support the implementation of the Government's counter-terrorism strategy overseas.

Sir Alan Duncan: We have taken significant steps to implement our international counter-terrorism strategy. We have deployed an increase in staff across the globe during the course of the last two years, boosting our existing efforts, including in the Middle East, North Africa, South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. This increase has helped us to work with our international partners on priorities such as tackling the risk posed by foreign fighters who may now leave conflict zones in Iraq and Syria, and on Preventing Terrorist Use of the Internet.

Iran: Nuclear Power

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps the Government has taken to support the implementation of the Iran nuclear deal.

Alistair Burt: ​The UK is committed to full implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) by all parties. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) continues to report Iran's compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA, most recently on 31 August. The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have spoken to their US counterparts, making clear that the deal is working and is a UK priority. They have also spoken regularly with their French and German counterparts on this issue. Given President Trump's announcement of 13 October that he will not recertify Iran's compliance with the deal, we are looking at the detail of US proposals and engaging with counterparts in the US, Europe and Iran to examine the implications as we work to preserve the JCPOA.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Visits Abroad

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he or the Minister for North Africa plans to visit (a) Egypt or (b) the headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa in the current session of Parliament.

Alistair Burt: I visited Egypt and met with my counterparts in August 2017. I will return for the El Alamein commemorations on 21 October. There are currently no plans for me or the Foreign Secretary to visit the African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa. The joint FCO/DFID Minister for Africa, Rory Stewart MP, visited Addis Ababa in August this year and had meetings with the AU Commission Chair and officials.

Egypt: LGBT People

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the persecution of LGBT people in Egypt.

Alistair Burt: The UK is committed to protecting and promoting the rights of LGBT people and to supporting the legal, cultural and social change required to make equality a reality for LGBT people the world over. We are very concerned about the current situation for LGBT people in Egypt, especially in light of the recent crackdown. The Egyptian government is well aware of our position on LGBT rights and we call on the Government of Egypt to uphold and protect the rights of all minorities in the country.We are concerned about reports which suggest some detained LGBT people have been tortured. We will continue to monitor the human rights situation in Egypt, and to urge the Egyptian government to implement the human rights provisions contained in its constitution, and investigate all reports of abuse against detainees.

LGBT People: Human Rights

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote LGBT rights in (a) Egypt and (b) other countries.

Alistair Burt: The UK is committed to protecting and promoting the rights of LGBT people and to supporting the legal, cultural and social change required to make equality a reality for LGBT people the world over. We are very concerned about the current situation for LGBT people in Egypt, especially in light of the recent crackdown. The Egyptian government is well aware of our position on LGBT rights and we call on the Government of Egypt to uphold and protect the rights of all minorities.We are concerned about reports which suggest some detained LGBT people have been tortured. We will continue to monitor the human rights situation in Egypt, and to urge the Egyptian government to implement the human rights provisions contained in its constitution, and investigate all reports of abuse against detainees.

Gender: Equality

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Government's special envoy for gender equality on the promotion of women's rights worldwide.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary appointed Joanna Roper as the FCO Special Envoy for Gender Equality in February 2017 and she started in her role in April . He has regular contact with her in connection with this.

Egypt: LGBT People

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has received reports of LGBT people having their sexuality allegedly verified by means of anal testing; and whether he intends to raise that alleged verification with his Egyptian counterpart.

Alistair Burt: The UK is committed to protecting and promoting the rights of LGBT people and to supporting the legal, cultural and social change required to make equality a reality for LGBT people the world over. We are very concerned about the current situation for LGBT people in Egypt, especially in light of the recent crackdown. The Egyptian government is well aware of our position on LGBT rights and we call on the Government of Egypt to uphold and protect the rights of all minorities in the country. ​​We are concerned about reports which suggest some detained LGBT people have been tortured. We will continue to monitor the human rights situation in Egypt, and to urge the Egyptian government to implement the human rights provisions contained in its constitution, and investigate all reports of abuse against detainees.

LGBT People: Human Rights

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will appoint a special envoy for LGBT rights.

Mark Field: The promotion and protection of LGBT rights is a UK foreign policy priority. We have no current plans to appoint a Special Envoy to work exclusively on LGBT rights. However, addressing this issue is a key part of the work of the FCO's Special Envoy for Gender Equality, Joanna Roper, who took up the position in April. My Ministerial colleagues and I - and indeed every one of our Ambassadors and High Commissioners worldwide - also act as envoys on this important issue. in April. My Ministerial colleagues and I - and indeed every one of our Ambassadors and High Commissioners worldwide - also act as envoys on this important issue.We believe that interventions by Ministers and senior officials, including the Special Envoy for Gender Equality, on this issue are more likely to yield results than the engagement of a dedicated Special Envoy for LGBT rights. Given the difficulty of tackling this issue in many countries, an envoy with such a designation would most likely be unable to secure access in the very countries where the problems are most severe.

Andargachew Tsege

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 27 February 2017 to Question 68600, whether he has had sight of the bilateral treaty between Ethiopia and Yemen on Andy Tsege's removal to Ethiopia.

Rory Stewart: Mr Tsege was detained in Yemen and taken to Ethiopia in June 2014. Following Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) inquiries the Ethiopian and Yemeni authorities have both stated that they have a bilateral treaty that permited Mr Tsege's extradition to Ethiopia. We have not seen a copy of the treaty in question. The British Government takes Mr Tsege's case extremely seriously and is working to ensure his welfare and legal access. The Ethiopian government are in no doubt about the importance we place on Mr Tsege's case: the FCO continues to raise this case at the highest levels.

Andargachew Tsege

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has requested that consular visits with Andy Tsege be conducted in private.

Rory Stewart: The British Government takes Mr Tsege's case extremely seriously and is working to ensure his welfare and legal access while he is detained. This Government has provided significant support to Mr Tsege and his family. Our Ambassador to Ethiopia has visited Mr Tsege on multiple occasions – most recently on 12 October. It is not common practice for consular visits to be held in private. During our consular visits to Mr Tsege, an Ethiopian official has been present. We consider this presence of an Ethiopian official to be in accordance with Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, and in line with local laws and regulations.

Syria: Military Intervention

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his US counterparts on the reported death of Joe Dixon as a result of a drone strike in Syria.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is aware of media reports that Sally Jones and her son, Joe Dixon, were killed in a drone strike in Syria in June. The FCO does not comment on security matters.

Syria: Military Intervention

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will confirm whether Sally Jones and Joe Dixon were killed in a drone strike; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is aware of media reports that Sally Jones and her son, Joe Dixon, were killed in a drone strike in Syria in June. The FCO does not comment on security matters.

Colombia: Peace Negotiations

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of implementation of the 2016 peace agreement in Colombia; and if he will make a statement.

Sir Alan Duncan: Colombia has had an historic year. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) has laid down its arms and the peace deal brought an end to the longest conflict in the western hemisphere. We recognise the challenges facing the implementation of the deal and the UK continues to work closely with Colombia to help ensure long-term, sustainable peace and prosperity.

Antarctic

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his priorities are for the Antarctic region for the next 12 months.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Government's priorities are: maintaining the integrity of the Antarctic Treaty, which designates the continent as a region reserved for peace and science, and maintaining the UK’s leading role within that system; protecting UK sovereign interests and the level of British presence in the British Antarctic Territory; supporting the British Antarctic Survey in delivering world class science in a region essential to understanding the world’s changing climate; enhancing the environmental protection of the continent, including the sustainable management of marine resources. The UK will also be leading efforts to improve the management of increasing levels of Antarctic tourism, protect important (and often British) Antarctic heritage and enhance our understanding of the Polar oceans, including tackling issues such as plastic pollution.

Antarctic: Nature Conservation

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department will represent the UK at the meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources between 16 and 27 October 2017.

Sir Alan Duncan: As is always the case, the UK has a strong contingent at the annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. This is in order to push for increased protection of the Southern Ocean and to protect UK sovereign interests in the South Atlantic. The delegation comprises three Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials but also includes representatives of the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and the British Antarctic Survey.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has received legal opinions on the status and contravention of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's rights under (a) international human rights law and (b) Iranian law.

Alistair Burt: Our legal advisers are fully engaged on the cases of all our dual-national detainees in Iran, including Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe. We continue to raise these cases with the Iranian authorities at every opportunity.

Gao Zhisheng

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has received from (a) members of the public, (b) non-governmental organisations and (c) parliamentarians on the detention of the Chinese human rights lawyer, Gao Zhisheng.

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Chinese counterpart on  the detention of the Chinese human rights lawyer, Gao Zhisheng.

Mark Field: We are deeply concerned about the case of Gao Zhisheng, particularly after his reported disappearance in August. We are continuing to seek further information about his whereabouts and his condition.  We raised Mr Gao’s case with the Chinese authorities in a list of ‘cases of concern’ ahead of the UK/China Human Rights Dialogue in June 2017. My officials met Gao Zhisheng’s daughter, Grace Gao, and representatives of a UK NGO on 16 October to discuss his case and obtain more information.

Nuclear Disarmament

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Joint Press Statement from the Permanent Representatives to the UN of the US, France and UK on 7 July 2017, what steps the Government is taking to reduce the global stockpile of nuclear weapons.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Government continues to work to deliver the Strategic Defence and Security Review commitment to reduce our stockpile of nuclear weapons to no more than 180 warheads by the mid 2020s. Progress on global nuclear disarmament also requires building the mutual trust between states, addressing the security concerns that continue to make nuclear deterrence necessary and putting into place the key international architecture to help build the conditions for further disarmament. The Government continues to work with partners across the international community to press for key steps towards multilateral nuclear disarmament, including the entry into force of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and successful negotiations on a Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty in the Conference on Disarmament. We also continue to play a leading role in disarmament verification.

Somalia: Counter-terrorism

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with (a) his counterpart in Somalia and (b) representatives of Somalia in the UK on support for counter-terrorism and security issues in that country since the recent terrorist attack in Mogadishu.

Rory Stewart: The Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and I have written to the Somali President and Prime Minister, offering our condolences for the loss of life in the 14 October attacks and underlining the UK's solidarity with Somalia in the fight against terrorism. Our Embassy is in regular contact with the Somali government to support security sector reform, and in August I met the Somali Defence and Internal Security Ministers to urge progress on security coordination with the international community, during my visit to Somalia.​​​The UK is funding and mentoring the Joint Operations Coordination Centre in Mogadishu, which coordinated the rescue and recovery operations following the attack, and counter-terrorism police that helped secure the area. The UK contributes logistical and funding support through the UN and EU to the African Union peacekeeping mission to Somalia, and provides pre-deployment training for troop contributing countries. The UK is also committed to strengthening Somali security forces, providing support for capacity building and the provision of non-lethal equipment to the Somali National Army.​

Department for Exiting the European Union

Department for Exiting the European Union: Health

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, how many officials of his Department have expertise in health.

Mr Steve Baker: The information requested is not held centrally and therefore, we are not in a position to provide this for particular groups of staff.The Department for Exiting the European Union now has over 500 staff and is drawing together expertise from a wide range of departments where there is specific relevant knowledge. All departments are equipping themselves with the resources they need to get the best deal for the UK.

Brexit: British Nationals Abroad

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps he is taking to ensure that the views of UK citizens living in the EU are taken into account during the negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

Mr Robin Walker: Throughout the process of the negotiations we have sought to understand the unique challenges of our UK nationals already living in the EU. Ministers from the Department for Exiting the European Union have met delegates from groups representing UK nationals in the EU, to hear their views and concerns. Our Embassies and Ambassadors in the remaining EU27 have also engaged extensively with their communities in country. As negotiations progress we will continue to work in the interests of our nationals, and we remain confident that we will be able to reach the best possible reciprocal deal to secure their rights.

Brexit: Young People

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps he is taking to ensure that young people who were unable to vote in the 2016 EU referendum are being taken into account during the negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps he is taking to ensure that the views of children and young people are taken into account during the negotiations on the UK leaving the EU.

Mr Robin Walker: We are taking a cross-Whitehall approach to engagement and working closely with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport to ensure that we speak to stakeholders who represent a range of groups and opinions. The Government continues to listen to the voices of young people as negotiations progress. Ministers and officials from the Department for Exiting the EU have worked with colleagues across Government and held bilateral meetings and a number of roundtables with youth organisations that represent a cross-section of young people.

UK Relations With EU

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what representations he has received from (a) businesses and (b) business organisations on the relationship the UK should have with the single market after the UK leaves the EU.

Mr Robin Walker: The Department has held numerous meetings with representatives from the business community since the Referendum in June last year. This has included over 300 individual meetings, roundtables and other types of engagement with all sectors of the economy and in every region of the UK. The insight and analysis provided as a result of this close dialogue is incredibly valuable in supporting the Government’s objective to agree a comprehensive new partnership with the EU, ensuring business can continue to access European markets while recognising the indivisibility of the EU’s four freedoms.

Department for International Development

Occupied Territories: Overseas Aid

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2017 to Question 106502, what process she used in reviewing aid to the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and on what evidence she made decisions on which programmes to close and which to continue.

Alistair Burt: The Secretary of State’s decisions on which programmes to close and which to continue were based on alignment to UK Government objectives on the Middle East Peace Process, performance and impact, value for money and the safeguarding of UK taxpayers’ funds. This has resulted in a portfolio with a stronger focus on delivering essential services to the most vulnerable Palestinians and Palestinian refugees. Evidence was gathered from individual programme annual reviews and considered alongside advice from officials.

Occupied Territories: Overseas Aid

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2017 to Question 106502, what (a) bilateral and (b) centrally managed programmes have been closed or discontinued as a result of the examination of her Department's programme in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Alistair Burt: As a result of the full examination of DFID’s programme in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs), the OPTs components of the following programmes are being discontinued: i) Arab Women’s Enterprise Fund, ii) Gender and Adolescents Global Evidence research programme, iii) a Development Impact Bonds pilot and, iv) evaluation work through the humanitarian educational accelerator. The Secretary of State also decided not to pursue other new bilateral programmes which were being considered. These decisions ensure that aid to the OPTs is being used in the most effective way and provides the best value for money to the UK taxpayer. The UK remains committed to supporting the Palestinian people and the viability of a two-state solution.

Bangladesh: Islamic Relief

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make representations to the Bangladeshi Government on ensuring that Islamic Relief is able to operate in that country; and if she will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: The UK is at the forefront of responding to the plight of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. As a world leader in humanitarian crises, this is what we do best. We have repeatedly called for better access for NGOs working in Rohingya-populated areas to be allowed access based on merit, and will continue to do so. We are pressing for a clearer, more transparent process for registering NGOs working with the Rohingya in Bangladesh.

Department for Education

Schools: Shropshire

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if the additional £3.7 million allocated to Shropshire schools was previously allocated to another area of her Department's spending.

Nick Gibb: We have an announced an additional £1.3bn investment in core schools funding across 2018-19 and 2019-20, including an additional £3.7m for schools in Shropshire.This additional £1.3bn investment will be funded in full from efficiencies and savings from within the Department's budget. We believe it is right to prioritise core schools funding, even as we continue the vital task of repairing the public finances. Making savings and efficiencies allows us to maximise the funding which is allocated directly to schools, which can ensure that it is spent where it will have the greatest impact. It will not be possible to attribute funding increases in specific areas to particular savings and efficiencies.

Teachers: Recruitment

Lucy Frazer: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the prevalence of recruitment agencies cold-calling teachers on school telephone lines during school hours and contacting teachers on their professional email addresses.

Nick Gibb: The Department is undertaking user research to strengthen its understanding of the issues schools face when advertising teacher vacancies and the challenges teachers have finding and applying for jobs. The research will also be used to inform the development and design of a new national teacher vacancy service. This service will aim to reduce the time schools spend on publishing vacancies and the cost of recruiting new teachers; make it easier for teachers to find jobs quickly and easily; and increase the availability and quality of data on teacher recruitment.This research is highlighting concerns in schools about the cost and practices of recruitment agencies, which we will explore further.The Department is in the planning phase of a new commercial framework for the use of schools engaging with supply agencies. As part of this we are proposing to include measures designed to improve the conduct of some agencies.

Music: Education

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children have been taught music in schools in each constituency in each of the last three years.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not record the number of pupils being taught particular subjects. The Department records the number of pupils entering into GCSE and A level examinations for each subject. This provides the best proxy for the figure requested; this figure is for local authorities and not constituencies. The figures for the past three years (2013/14, 2014/15 and 2015/16) are published online[1].The figures for 2016/17 entries are not available yet and will be published in January 2018[2]. The Department’s national network of 120 music education hubs ensures that all pupils aged 5 to 18 have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument; to make music with others and learn to sing. [1]https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/download-data - Select the year, then ‘all of England’, ‘key stage 4 qualification and subject data’ and then download the Excel file. You can then sum the entries in music, for each school, within each local authority[2]The data will be available here: https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/download-data

Home Education: GCSE

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the median cost was for a home-schooled student to sit five GCSEs, including mathematics and English in each of the last five years.

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of exam (a) boards and (b) centres charging home-schooled student to sit exams on the educational achievements of those students.

Nick Gibb: There is provision in the Education Act 1996 to support parents who decide to have their children home-schooled. In doing so, parents are also accepting full responsibility for the consequences, including any costs incurred. The Department does not collect data on the charges made by schools to private GCSE candidates. These costs are decided by the individual exam centre at which the pupil sits their examinations, and will include fees charged by the awarding organisations for their work in developing, processing and awarding qualifications. Exam centres are likely to include an administrative fee to cover costs incurred for providing facilities for a private candidate. The Department does not collect data on the number of home-schooled children or the quality of their education and so no assessment can be made of the impact of the costs on the educational achievements of home-schooled children.

Pupils: Per Capita Costs

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, for what reasons funding that was previously directed to support specific additional needs is now to be directed towards minimum levels of per pupil funding.

Nick Gibb: The national funding formula protects the £5.9 billion total for funding directed towards additional needs, as proposed in our consultation. It distributes that funding in line with the best available evidence: using a broad measure of deprivation to include all those who are likely to need extra help; and increasing the proportion of additional needs spending allocated on the basis of low prior attainment, to give additional support to those who need help to catch up. We heard throughout the consultation that we could do more through our formula to support those schools that attract the lowest levels of per pupil funding. We have listened carefully, and with the additional investment of £1.3 billion, have decided that it is appropriate both to raise the basic amount that each pupil attracts, and to target additional funding to the lowest funded. We believe that this will help ensure that every school has the resources it needs to provide appropriate support to all of its pupils. None of this additional funding has been found by reducing funding directed towards additional needs.

Schools: Finance

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the level of funding in the new funding formula for schools that have a large number of pupils with additional needs and those that do not.

Nick Gibb: The national funding formula allocates the majority of funding, 72.9%, through the basic per-pupil allowance, while protecting the funding directed towards children with additional needs, with a total spend of £5.9 billion and overall weighting of 17.8%.Funding will be distributed according to the individual needs and characteristics of every school in the country. This will direct resources where they are needed most, and provide transparency and predictability for schools.The attached table shows the unit values, total funding and proportion of funding for each factor in the formula.



unit values, total funding and proportion
(PDF Document, 110.55 KB)

Secondary Education: Finance

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the Government's policy is on secondary school inclusion; and how that policy has been taken account of in the new funding formula.

Nick Gibb: We are committed to an inclusive education for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), and progressively removing the barriers to education and participation in mainstream education. The Children and Families Act 2014 secures the general presumption in law of mainstream education in relation to decisions about where children and young people with special educational needs should be educated; and the Equality Act 2010 provides protection from discrimination for disabled people. The 2014 Act also requires local authorities to ensure the views, wishes and feelings of children, young people and parents are taken into account when deciding what support children and young people with SEND need.The introduction of national funding formulae for schools and high needs is supported by significant extra investment of £1.3 billion across 2018-19 and 2019-20, over and above the budget announcement at the 2015 spending review. We are therefore able to provide additional funding for every school and allocate extra high needs funding to every local authority, both of which will support schools in providing for their pupils, including those with SEND. Both schools and high needs national funding formulae reflect the number of children and young people with SEND who are attending mainstream or specialist provision.

Free Schools

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many sites for free schools have been purchased by the Education and Skills Funding Agency since June 2010; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: Since June 2010, the Education and Skills Funding Agency have purchased 748 sites for free schools. This figure includes both temporary and permanent sites.

Students: Finance

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Written Statement of 9 October 2017, on Student finance update, HCWS 145, what estimate her Department has made of changes to the Resource Accounting Budgetary Charge as a result of the changes on policy in that statement.

Joseph Johnson: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Students: Finance

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Written Statement of 9 October 2017, on Student finance update, HCWS 145, what estimate her Department has made of the long-term annual cost to the taxpayer of those policy changes in that statement.

Joseph Johnson: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Graduates: Disadvantaged

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Early Years Workforce Strategy published in March 2017, when her Department plans to publish the feasibility study on the development of a programme to grow the graduate workforce in disadvantaged areas.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We are considering a range of approaches to increasing the number of graduates employed in the early years sector, but work is still underway. We will engage the sector in exploring ways to target support where it is most needed. We continue to support graduates into the sector through our funding of the Early Years Initial Teacher Training programme, including bursaries and employer incentives.

Pupil Premium: Plymouth

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children are in receipt of the service pupil premium; and what the amount received by Plymouth schools was of that premium in financial years (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17 and (c) 2017-18.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Information on the number of pupils in receipt of the service premium and the amount received by schools in each local authority in each of financial years 2015 to 2016, 2016 to 2017 and 2017 to 2018 is available on gov.uk at the links listed below. Financial year 2015 to 2016:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-2015-to-2016-allocations.Financial year 2016 to 2017:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-conditions-of-grant-2016-to-2017.Financial year 2017 to 2018:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pupil-premium-conditions-of-grant-2017-to-2018.

Pre-school Education: Warwickshire

Matt Western: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the local authority of Warwickshire County Council has requested to disapply the high pass-through requirement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Warwickshire County Council has not made an application under regulation 29(1)(m) of the School and Early Years Finance (England) Regulations 2017 for the Secretary of State’s authorisation to modify the operation of regulation 22 (the 93% high pass-through requirement).

Children: Day Care

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to her Department's response to Freedom of Information request 45757, for what reason her Department does not hold information on family income in relation to validation of 30 hours of free childcare codes.

Mr Robert Goodwill: HMRC checks a parent’s eligibility for 30 hours free childcare (including their income) and a 30 hours eligibility code is generated if the parent is eligible. The following information is required to validate a 30 hours code via the Department for Education’s Eligibility Checking System: the 30 hours eligibility code, parent or partner’s National Insurance Number and child’s date of birth. The Department does, therefore, not require information on family income to validate a 30 hours code.

Children: Day Care

Tracy Brabin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether there is a deadline on using childcare eligibility codes issued by HM Revenue and Customs to secure 30 hours of free childcare from childcare providers.

Mr Robert Goodwill: A parent can claim 30 hours the term following the child’s third birthday and the term following receipt of their eligibility code from HMRC (whichever is later). This is set out in the Department’s early years entitlements: operational guidance to support local authorities and childcare providers, which is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/30-hours-free-childcare-la-and-early-years-provider-guide. The eligibility code will, in the majority of cases, have a three month validity period from the date of a parent’s successful determination from HMRC. Every three months parents will need to reconfirm that the details they entered on their application are still accurate to check that they are still eligible. If the parent is still eligible at reconfirmation, their validity period will extend by a further three months. This is a relatively simple process compared to initial application. A parent is able to retain their childcare place for a short period if they become ineligible for 30 hours, known as the grace period. The grace period is intended to minimise disruption for the child, enable parents to make alternative arrangements as a result of a loss of eligibility and to allow providers and local authorities greater time to manage their places.

Ministry of Justice

Counter-terrorism: USA

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has received information obtained by the US Administration by means of provisions within the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Sam Gyimah: It is the longstanding policy of successive British Governments not to comment on intelligence matters.

Prison Officers: Recruitment

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many additional prison officers have been recruited since June 2017.

Mr Sam Gyimah: As part of the Prison Safety and Reform White Paper published in November 2016, the Government committed to an increase of 2500 prison officers by the end of 2018. Between the end of June 2017 and the end of August 2017, there has been a net increase of 464 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) Band 3 to 5 prison officers. Between the end of October 2016 and the end of August 2017, there has been a net increase of 1264 FTE Band 3 to 5 prison officers. By the end of 2018 the Government plans to increase prison officer numbers by a further (net) 1236 FTE officers.

Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012

Mrs Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the Government plans to commence its review of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government is considering the planned post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms and we will make an announcement in due course.

NHS: Negligence

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applications for exceptional case funding were (a) made and (b) granted for clinical negligence where the case relates to vaginal mesh implants in each of the last five years.

Mr Sam Gyimah: From the inception of the Exceptional Case Funding (ECF) scheme in April 2013, there have been no applications for ECF either lodged or granted for clinical negligence claims relating to vaginal mesh implants.

Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012

Mrs Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which options the Government plans to assess on reducing the number of litigants in person as part of its review into the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Since 2015, the Government has invested £5 million of funding to support litigants in person through a range of measures designed to provide practical support and information, as well as providing routes to free or more affordable legal advice services.The Government is considering the planned post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms and we will make an announcement in due course.

Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012

Mrs Helen Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which provisions of the Legal Aid Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 the Government's plans to scrutinise in its post-implementation review.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The Government is considering the planned post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms and we will make an announcement in due course.We are aware that previous Ministers agreed to submit a post-legislative memorandum for the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act to Parliament and to begin a post-implementation review of recent legal aid reforms shortly afterward. We are also aware that the Government has had a long-standing commitment to doing this review and publishing it by April 2018.

NHS: Negligence

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many clinical negligence proceedings involving the death of a child were granted legal aid in (a) 2008, (b) 2009, (c) 2010, (d) 2011, (e) 2012 and (f) 2013.

Mr Sam Gyimah: This information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Domestic Violence

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many domestic abuse cases included the use of Level 1 restorative justice in the last 12 months.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Tackling domestic violence and abuse is a key priority for this Government and we are clear that perpetrators of domestic abuse should, wherever possible be prosecuted. The police frequently use the term ‘level one RJ’ or ‘street level’ RJ to describe cases where they have facilitated a conversation between the offender and victim at the time of attendance at the incident. This may be done in conjunction with a community resolution, and is most commonly used in cases such as shoplifting or criminal damage. We are clear that level one RJ is not appropriate in cases of domestic abuse. While information on the number of community resolutions is collected centrally, this does not include information about whether RJ formed part of that disposal. As set out in the Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy we are developing a cross government paper on the use of RJ to help victims of domestic abuse cases cope and recover.

Family Proceedings

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of family law proceedings in England and Wales involved domestic violence or child abuse in the last 12 months.

Mr Sam Gyimah: The information requested is not held centrally.

Prime Minister

Brexit

Kate Hoey: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to her Oral contribution of 9 October 2017, Official Report, column 55, what sea area she referred to as coastal waters.

Mrs Theresa May: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by the Minister of State for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Camborne and Redruth (Mr Eustice) on 10 July 2017, UIN 2642.

Ministry of Defence

Ministry of Defence: Procurement

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 10 October 2017 to Question 10447, on Ministry of Defence: procurement, to which firms those 20 civil servants within the Government Commercial Function were seconded.

Harriett Baldwin: The 20 civil servants within the Government Commercial Function were seconded to NATO Eurofighter and Tornado Management Agency and the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation.

HMS Prince of Wales

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether HMS Prince of Wales has been designed to operate in littoral waters.

Harriett Baldwin: The Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carriers have been designed to operate as part of a Maritime Task Group in both the Carrier Strike and Littoral Manoeuvre roles, offering a significant basing option for the projection of air and amphibious power.For operational security reasons, we do not comment on specific capabilities, as this would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

European Fighter Aircraft: Saudi Arabia

Leo Docherty: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to support the sale of a second tranche of Typhoon aircraft to Saudi Arabia.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: This Government recognises fully the potential benefits of securing future export orders for Typhoon aircraft. In respect of Saudi Arabia, Ministers and officials are in regular contact with their counterparts to discuss how the UK might help meet that nation's legitimate defence and security requirements. These discussions have included a potential second batch order for Typhoon aircraft.

Hawk Aircraft

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many flying hours the nine Hawk aircraft of the Royal Aircraft Aerobatics Team have flown since they were introduced.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: There are currently 14 Hawk T1 aircraft with the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team (RAFAT). This provides spare capacity should any display aircraft develop faults or require routine maintenance. The flying hours accrued by each individual aircraft during its lifetime are given below: Individual AircraftFlying HoursXX1778,450XX2048,200XX2278,030XX2328,680XX2429,530XX24410,490XX24510,130XX2788,300XX3108,660XX3118,390XX3197,240XX3227,210XX3236,670XX3258,860Figures provided are as at 16 October 2017. RAFAT rotates its aircraft within the general Hawk T1 fleet of 75 aircraft and therefore the hours shown will not all have been accrued with RAFAT.

Armed Forces: Pay

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with the Armed Forces Pay Review Body on levels of pay for the armed forces.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 10 July 2017 (Official Report, column 10) to Question 900299, to the hon. Member for Weaver Vale (Mr Amesbury)Ministers are in regular contact with the Armed Forces Pay Review Body as part of the annual pay round process. I gave oral evidence to the review body in November prior to its 2017 report, and I expect to meet it again prior to its 2018 report.

Turkey: Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with his US counterpart on the delivery of the F-35 to Turkey.

Harriett Baldwin: Turkey, like all F-35 Partner Nations, is in regular discussion with the Joint Programme Office with regard to the delivery of F-35.

Japan: Military Aircraft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with his Japanese counterpart on that country's procurement of a replacement for its KT4 trainer aircraft.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We regularly discuss current military capabilities with allies and partner nations, including Japan. These conversations are important to ensure that we understand one another's capabilities and potential future requirements.

Turkey: Military Aircraft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent discussions he has had with his Turkish counterpart on that country's procurement of a replacement for its T38 trainer aircraft.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: We have regular discussions with Turkey about our respective equipment and capability programmes, including our future defence aerospace requirements. Discussions are on-going regarding current and other potential areas of collaboration.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit: Telephone Services

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the (a) shortest, (b) average and (c) longest recorded call was to the universal credit helpline in each of the last 12 months.

Damian Hinds: Holding answer received on 17 October 2017



Average call duration data is available in respect of the Universal Credit helpline for each of the last 12 months. However, data to indicate the shortest and longest recorded call durations is not available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Please note:The average call duration on the Universal Credit Helpline indicated in the data table below includes time in a telephony queue awaiting answer and the time spent talking to a customer adviser.The data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only and has not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. The data should therefore be treated with caution. MonthAverage Call Duration (in minutes and seconds)Oct-1611:20Nov-1612:20Dec-1611:23Jan-1712:01Feb-1712:40Mar-1711:08Apr-1710:25May-1710:10Jun-1711:36Jul-1712:14Aug-1713:02Sep-1713:12 Data Sources: BT OPMIS and NGCC

Universal Credit: Telephone Services

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance his Department has issued to ensure that universal credit claimants are informed of the option of being called back when telephoning the universal credit helpline.

Damian Hinds: Holding answer received on 17 October 2017



The Department’s guidance directs staff dealing with Universal Credit claims to call customers back either if they request it or if they express any concern about the cost of calling. Additionally, on 18 October 2017 at a Work and Pensions Select Committee hearing, the Secretary of State announced plans to make the Universal Credit helpline a freephone number over the next month.

Universal Credit: Telephone Services

Debbie Abrahams: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the total number of telephone calls made to the universal credit helpline was from a (a) landline number and (b) mobile telephone number in each of the last 12 months.

Damian Hinds: Holding answer received on 17 October 2017



The requested information is not routinely available and could not be provided within a proportionate cost.

Pension Funds: QG Apollo Limited

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timetable is for the Pension Regulator to appoint a trustee to manage the QG Apollo Pension Scheme.

Guy Opperman: The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has the power to appoint an independent trustee in certain circumstances where it is necessary and appropriate to do so. TPR is the independent regulator for workplace pensions and, as such, it would not be appropriate for me to comment in more detail.

Independent Case Examiner

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, from what acceptance date the Independent Case Examiner's Office is allocating complaints to an investigation case manager.

Caroline Dinenage: As at 18 October 2017, the Independent Case Examiner’s Office were allocating dedicated Investigation Case Managers:Disability, Pensions, Working Age and Debt Management complaints that were accepted on or after 22 August 2016;Providers complaints that were accepted on or after 22 August 2016;Child Maintenance Group complaints that were accepted on of after 11 October 2016; andWASPI complaints that were accepted on or after 16 March 2017.

Independent Case Examiner

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many cases were awaiting allocation to an investigation case manager at the Independent Case Examiner's Office on 30 September 2017.

Caroline Dinenage: On 30 September 2017, the Independent Case Examiner’s Office had 2,110 cases awaiting allocation to an investigation case manager.

Children: Maintenance

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will bring forward proposals for additional powers of enforcement to ensure that employers comply with deductions of earnings issued by the Child Maintenance Service.

Caroline Dinenage: The Child Maintenance Service already has the power to oblige employers to comply with deduction from earnings orders and supports employers through provision of an online self-service portal and dedicated Employer Payment Team. Employers who fail to comply with a deduction from earnings order are contacted as soon as possible to establish the reasons for non-compliance and secure payment of the outstanding amounts due. If compliance action is required we can use our criminal powers to enforce the maximum penalty of a fine. We have no plans to introduce additional powers.

Children: Maintenance

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of levels of co-operation between employers and the Child Maintenance Service to process deductions of earnings in a timely manner.

Caroline Dinenage: The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has made significant improvements to better the working relationships between themselves and employers in order to process Deduction from Earnings Orders (DEO) in a timely manner. Previously all Deduction from Earnings Orders (DEO) were handled by individual caseworkers. In order to improve DEO compliance a dedicated team have been established in CMS who work closely with employers, providing support and advice throughout the process to ensure that payments are processed in a timely manner. The team has implemented a process from tracking and escalating issues where a DEO payment may not have been made or where the employer has not fully met their DEO requirements.

Universal Credit: Internet

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2017 to Question 105496, on universal credit: internet, how many new claimants log into their online journal after submitting a claim for universal credit within (a) 24 hours, (b) one week and (c) one month.

Damian Hinds: On average over the last 3 months the percentage of claimants logging onto their online Universal Credit journal after submitting a claim are: (a) Within 24 hours = 19%(b) Within one week = 67%(c) Within one month = 82%

Universal Credit: Homelessness

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what additional support is being offered to people applying for universal credit who (a) have lost identification documents during a period of homelessness and (b) are unable to provide a permanent address.

Damian Hinds: Where the claimant does not have sufficient documentary evidence to verify their identity, DWP follows a process known as a biographical security check, whereby the claimant is asked a series of security questions to validate their identity. Should the claimant fail the biographical security check, as an additional safeguard we can approach a third party to validate the claimant’s identity (subject to the claimant giving their consent). A claim to Universal Credit can still be made if a claimant does not have a permanent address.

Universal Credit

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of the six-week wait on universal credit payments on levels of (a) household poverty, (b) household debt and (c) rent arrears.

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the average level of debt held by a household on universal credit.

Damian Hinds: In order to ensure that claimants are supported during the wait for the first payment of Universal Credit DWP has in place a system of Advances which means claimants can receive financial support within 5 days of making their claim. Take up has increased significantly and the latest data shows that around half of new claimants are now receiving this support. Furthermore, we have taken steps to increase awareness further by amending guidance to ensure that claimants are aware at the start of their claim of the maximum amount they could receive as an advance and the maximum repayment period and further support is available such as help with budgeting. Our research shows that the nature of rent arrears is that they are temporary, reducing over time and that the majority of claimants are able to adapt to the changes and manage their monthly payments and successfully. We continue to monitor and evaluate the delivery of Universal Credit including payment of advances, rent arrears and other impacts as Universal Credit is rolled out to new areas of the country.

Universal Credit

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect of further advanced payment loans on financial security in cases were the universal credit recipients roll-out has caused financial hardship.

Damian Hinds: Advances of Universal Credit are advance payments which are then recovered over an agreed period. They are in place to ensure those in need are able to receive financial support and are not reliant on illegal and high-cost lenders. Advances are recovered over a maximum of six months, although exceptionally this period could be deferred by up to three months to prevent hardship. No interest is charged.

Social Security Benefits: Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to revise the criteria for determining applications for personal independence payments and employment and support allowance for people with Crohn's disease.

Penny Mordaunt: The assessment criteria for Employment and Support Allowance and Personal Independence Payment are intended to treat all health conditions and disabilities fairly and measure the functional impact of a person’s health condition or impairment on their ability to work or manage daily living and mobility activities rather than focusing on the health condition or disability itself.

Pension Credit: Glasgow East

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an estimate of how many people in Glasgow East constituency are eligible to receive pension credit.

Guy Opperman: The information requested on the number of individuals eligible to receive Pension Credit by parliamentary constituency is not available at that level. Information on the number of individuals in receipt of Pension Credit, by parliamentary constituency, is published and available at: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk Guidance for users is available at: https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

Universal Credit

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, who in those areas where universal credit is being rolled out is receiving the payment by sex in each household.

Damian Hinds: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

PAYE: Disclosure of Information

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2017 to Question 106562, on PAYE: disclosure of information, in what circumstances the abbreviation, LMI referred to is used to stand for Late, Missing and Incorrect.

Damian Hinds: We work in partnership with HMRC to reduce Late Missing and Incorrect earnings reports from employers, as a small percentage of this has an impact on Universal Credit payments for claimants who are in work.

Universal Credit

Jess Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2017 to Question 106034, on universal credit, for what reason that data is not available; and whether his Department has plans to make that data available.

Damian Hinds: We do not record the reasons for making split payments within Universal Credit households. DWP has no plans to begin capturing this information.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Community Plant Variety Office: National Institute of Agricultural Botany

Daniel Zeichner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what talks he has had with the EU Commission to ensure that the Community Plant Variety Office continues commissioning variety testing contracts to the National Institute of Agricultural Botany after the UK leaves the EU.

George Eustice: The issue of the CPVO and their commissioning was discussed with the Commission on 26 September. Future arrangements for plant variety testing will be subject to negotiation with the EU.

Apples: Exports

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) Royal Gala and (b) other types of apples were exported to non-EU countries in each of the last five years.

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) Royal Gala and (b) other types of apples were imported to the UK from EU member states in each of the last five years.

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to encourage farmers to increase the production of apples for (a) home markets, (b) export to the EU and (c) export to non-EU countries.

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) Royal Gala and (b) other types of apples that were imported to the UK from non-EU countries in each of the last five years.

Tonia Antoniazzi: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) Royal Gala and (b) other types of apples were exported to EU member states in each of the last five years.

George Eustice: HMRC trade data is unable to identify Royal Gala apples by name. The following table shows the volume of apples exported from the UK to EU member states, at the greatest level of detail available, in the last 5 years for which full data is available:tonnesApple type20122013201420152016Cider123271,6581,3281,456Other20,60821,11315,88619,74516,277Total20,73121,14017,54421,07417,733 Table Source: HMRC

Trade Agreements: Agricultural Products

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what representations he has received on the potential demerits of any trade deal that permits agricultural products to be traded on an all-Ireland basis; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: The UK Government is committed to delivering as seamless and frictionless a border as possible between Northern Ireland and Ireland, recognising the unique significance of the Irish land border and the highly-integrated nature of trade across it, including in agricultural products, because it is in the interests of the EU and all parts of the UK for the deeply integrated trade and economic relationship between the UK and EU to be maintained after our exit from the EU. This can be consistent with pursuing independent trade deals and the Government set out principles and proposals for doing so in our Northern Ireland position paper. We have also always been clear that our guiding principle will be to ensure that as we leave the EU no new barriers to living and doing business within the UK are created. I will make statements on the range of issues on agricultural trade over the course the negotiations.

Plastics

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce the use of single use plastics.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Our policies and regulations – such as the Packaging Waste Regulations – are designed to increase recycling and reduce the amount of packaging ending up in the natural environment. The Government will set out a new Resources and Waste Strategy in 2018. It will set out how we will work towards our ambition for zero avoidable waste by 2050.

Beverage Containers: Recycling

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to increase the level of recycling of single use drinks containers.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Our policies and regulations – such as the Packaging Waste Regulations – are designed to increase recycling and reduce the amount of packaging ending up in the natural environment. As part of the Litter Strategy for England, the Government has established the Voluntary and Economic Incentives Working Group. As its first piece of work, we have asked the Working Group to look at regulatory or voluntary measures to reduce littering and/or improve the recycling of drinks containers. On 2 October the Working Group launched a call for evidence which remains open until 30 October. The call for evidence includes questions on the costs, benefits and impacts of deposit and reward and return schemes. The Group is due to provide us with advice on potential incentives for drinks containers early in 2018. The Government will set out a new Resources and Waste Strategy in 2018. It will set out how we will work towards our ambition for zero avoidable waste by 2050.

Food

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of leaving the EU on the level of the UK's self sufficiency in food; and if he will make a statement.

George Eustice: The UK has a high degree of food security, as demonstrated by the 2010 UK Food Security Assessment. It is a comprehensive analysis of all aspects of food security, including household food security. We have just commenced a review of the assessment. The UKs current production to supply ratio is 60% for all food and 76% for indigenous-type foods. This has remained steady over the last decade and is not low in the context of the past 150 years. A higher production to supply ratio does not necessarily improve food security, given the opportunity for domestic supply variability as a result of weather variability and disease risk. The UK sources food from a diverse range of countries, in addition to a strong domestic production base. This will not change after leaving the EU. We want to grow more, sell more and export more British food. This will allow the food and drink sector to become even more resilient, competitive and profitable. It is our priority to enable an innovative, productive and competitive food supply chain from farm and sea to fork, which invests in people and skills.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Department for Communities and Local Government: Redundancy

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 6 July 2017 to Question 3360 on redundancy, how much of the £15,805,000 paid in redundancy payments was paid to (a) men and (b) women.

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 6 July 2017 to Question 3360 on redundancy, how many of the 322 exits negotiated by the departmental group were for (a) men and (b) women.

Mr Marcus Jones: Total exit packages agreed by the Department for Communities and Local Government and its Agencies and NDPBs in 2015-16.Male: 147Female: 175Total: 322Under the Civil Service Compensation Scheme rules, there is a very clear formula that must be followed when setting the exit package for a member of staff.In 2015/16, in line with the scheme rules, staff -Received 4 weeks’ pay for every year of reckonable service, up to a maximum of 21 years.Compensation was based on final FTE salary.Reckonable service for part time workers would be based on actual hours worked during part time periods (Qualifying service x Actual hours worked / Full time hours). Male (£)Female (£)Total (£)Cost of Exit Packages agreed by core Department and its agencies and NDPBs in 2015/16£7,933,500.00£7,871,500.00£15,805,000.00The table below shows the average time spent in service at each grade for those that left on voluntary exit.GradeMaleAverage Time in CSFemaleAverage Time in CSAO417415EO15283223HEO18252922SEO15192119G721262818G61322619SCS412226Total902312220

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many affordable residential pitches have been (a) started and (b) completed in each of the last five years.

Alok Sharma: The table below shows the number of new affordable residential traveller pitches (a) started and (b) completed in each of the last five financial years. Delivery during this period was recorded under the 2011-15 Traveller Pitch Funding programme and the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme. 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16 2016/17   a - started pitches 112 240 196 9* 34*b - completed pitches 4 39 420 52 36* * Relate to 15-18 AHP

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many (a) starts and (b) completions have occurred for Gypsy and Traveller sites under the Affordable Homes Programme 2015-18 in each local authority area.

Alok Sharma: The table below shows the number of new affordable residential pitches (a) started and (b) completed on traveller sites in each local authority area under the 2015-18 Affordable Homes Programme. All other local authority areas not listed in this table show a nil-return. Local Authoritya) Started pitches b) Completed pitchesCentral Bedfordshire22Darlington2222Harlow1212Solihull70Total4336* *36 total relates to the total amount of completed pitches in the programme of the 2015-18 Affordable Homes programme.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what discussions the Government had with Historic England on the proposal to build the Holocaust Memorial and Holocaust Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens (a) before the site was announced and (b) subsequently; on what dates those discussions were held; and what observations Historic England has made of that proposal.

Mr Marcus Jones: Historic England was consulted in August and September 2016 (ahead of the launch of the design competition in September 2016). They have subsequently played a formal role providing detailed input to the design competition assessing the design proposals, presenting to the shortlisted design teams at a site briefing session in November 2016 and contributing to the meetings of the Competition Jury’s Supporting Panel in February and March 2017.Historic England’s role in the Supporting Panel was to help the Jury identify those proposals which have effectively acknowledged the heritage significance and its policy context, and conversely those which do not appear to have done so or where significant doubts or uncertainties remain.The UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation also provided a briefing to the UNESCO Mission to Westminster in February 2017.

Fire Regulations

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 September 2017 to Question 7325, if his Department will issue additional fire safety advice in the period before the reviews and inquiry are complete.

Alok Sharma: The Government will continue to work with the Expert Panel to publish advice for building owners, as needed, in order to help them to protect their residents from fire. All advice is published on the Building Safety Programme webpage: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/building-safety-programme

Shops: Wheelchairs

Oliver Dowden: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment his Department has made of the relative accessibility to wheelchair users of shops in England.

Alok Sharma: The Government has commissioned research to evaluate the effectiveness of regulatory guidance about accessibility and we will publish the results in due course. We have not undertaken a separate assessment of the relative accessibility of shops for wheelchair users.

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Oliver Dowden: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that local authorities have appropriate powers to re-coup the cost of repairing damage caused by unauthorised Traveller encampments.

Alok Sharma: Local authorities have extensive powers to deal with unauthorised encampments, and Travellers can be ordered by a court to pay the court costs of the claim. We signalled our intention to issue a consultation on what more can be done to improve the effectiveness of enforcement powers, and will consider all suggestions carefully.

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Oliver Dowden: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to enable local authorities to expedite the removal of unauthorised Traveller encampments.

Alok Sharma: We intend to consult on the effectiveness of enforcement against unauthorised developments and encampments. We will seek views on whether there is anything that would ensure existing powers can be used more effectively. We will set out further details in due course.

Shops: Wheelchairs

Oliver Dowden: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what his policy is on statutory provisions to ensure that all shops in England have facilities to enable wheelchair access; and if he will make a statement.

Oliver Dowden: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that high street shops are wheelchair accessible.

Alok Sharma: Part M (Access to and use of buildings) of the Building Regulations requires that where building work takes place, including the erection or extension (and in some case material alteration) of a building, reasonable provision is made for access to and use of the building and its facilities. Approved Document M (Access to and use of Buildings) provides guidance on common ways of demonstrating compliance with this requirement. The Equality Act 2010 also places duties on building owners and service providers to make anticipatory reasonable adjustments to the physical features of buildings where a disabled person may be placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to a non-disabled person.

Social Rented Housing

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many (a) bungalows and (b) four bedroom homes were available for social rent in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Alok Sharma: The Department’s English Housing Survey collects information about the type of housing stock in the social rented sector, irrespective of whether it is available to rent.The English Housing Survey can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-housing-survey-2015-to-2016-headline-report.In 2015 (the latest date for which data are available), there were an estimated 421,000 bungalows in the social rented sector. There were an estimated 138,000 four bedroom homes in the sector.

Council Housing

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many people are registered as on the waiting list for a council property in (a) Ashfield, (b) Mansfield and (c) England in each of the last 12 months.

Alok Sharma: Figures on local authority waiting lists are available in live table 600 https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-rents-lettings-and-tenancies

Planning Permission: Appeals

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what records his Department keeps on the number of major decisions overturned at appeal by the local planning authority in England.

Alok Sharma: My department reports on the number of major decisions overturned at appeal by local planning authorities in England in planning statistics Live Table P152, using data provided by the Planning Inspectorate.The latest version of this table was published on 10 August 2017 as experimental statistics to enable councils to validate the information held.Live Table P152 can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-planning-application-statistics.

Department for Communities and Local Government: Termination of Employment

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many compromise agreements were agreed with staff leaving his Department in the last 12 months; how many such agreements contained confidentiality clauses; and what the value of severance and pension payments associated with each of those agreements was.

Mr Marcus Jones: There have been no compromise agreements agreed by the Department with staff leaving in the last 12 months.

Families: Disadvantaged

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the average expenditure on a troubled family under the revised system that began in 2015 has been to date.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Troubled Families Programme pays local authorities a maximum of £1,800 for direct work with each family. This is made up of two parts: up-front funding of £1,000 per family and a results-based payment of £800 if a family achieves certain sustained positive outcomes. This amount is unlikely to reflect the total amount spent on a family because local public service partners will invest additional funding depending on their local arrangements and the levels of support a family may require.

Housing: Construction

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many hectares of land owned by county councils have been made available for housing development in each of the last three years.

Alok Sharma: The Department does not collect information on the previous ownership of land on which housing has been built. Although the Department has published figures for the total amounts of land changing to residential use in England in each of 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 in live table P351. The published figures can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-land-use-change-statistics It is not possible to identify the amounts previously owned by county councils.Through the Land Release Fund, launched in August in partnership with the Cabinet Office One Public Estate programme, central government is providing £45 million of funding to support local authorities to release additional land for housing development.

Council Tax

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many local authorities in England have not increased levels of council tax in each of the last three years.

Mr Marcus Jones: The number of principal local authorities in England that did not increase their levels of council tax in each of the last three years are shown below:2015-162016-172017-182405026Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/council-tax-statistics#council-tax-levels-set-by-local-authorities

Health Education: Weather

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with cabinet colleagues on the planning of the Stay Well This Winter 2017 campaign.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Stay Well This Winter campaign is a joint campaign between NHS England and Public Health England, which aims to ease seasonal pressure on NHS urgent care and emergency services.I have not been involved in specific discussions on this campaign. However, my department regularly engages at both official and Ministerial level across government to ensure we are prepared for winter.

Supported Housing

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to publish a supported housing green paper.

Mr Marcus Jones: Holding answer received on 19 October 2017



Developing a workable and sustainable funding model for supported housing is a priority for the Government. We have listened to the sector through our earlier public consultation on this issue, and we have also taken careful stock of the joint DCLG/DWP Select Committee report on supported housing.We know the supported housing sector needs certainty to help it continue to plan and deliver new much needed supported housing.We will set out further details on our plans later in the autumn.

Private Rented Housing: Newham

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to make a decision on the application from the London Borough of Newham to continue its private rented sector licensing scheme.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, when he plans to make a decision on the London Borough of Newham's application to continue its private rented sector licensing scheme.

Alok Sharma: Holding answer received on 19 October 2017



The application for confirmation of the London Borough of Newham's proposed selective licensing designation is under consideration and a decision will be made in due course.

Derelict Land

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what proportion of new dwellings in England were built on previously developed land in each year since 2015.

Alok Sharma: The information requested is available in Live Table P300 at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-land-use-change-statistics.

Right to Buy Scheme: Housing Associations

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what the Government's policy is on implementing a right to buy scheme for tenants of housing association properties in England.

Alok Sharma: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Homelessness: Travel

Yvonne Fovargue: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the number of homeless people who have been offered a one-way train ticket by local authorities under the policy to reconnect those people with their families between 2012 and 2017.

Mr Marcus Jones: Even one person without a roof over their head is too many. That’s why this Government is investing £550 million to 2020 to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping, as well as implementing the Homelessness Reduction Act, which will require councils to provide early support to people at risk of becoming homeless.In some circumstances, the chance to reconnect with their family or friends in another area can help resolve a person's homelessness. But councils should be certain that they are offering someone real help that will resolve their homelessness.The Department does not hold information on the number of homeless people offered reconnections. More people will be offered help under the homelessness legislation following the commencement of the Homelessness Reduction Act in April 2018. From this point our new data requirements will generate more detailed information about applicants who are referred from one local authority to another for help because of their local connections.

Right to Buy Scheme

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to proceed with the forced sale of council homes and other assets in order to fund the right to buy programme.

Alok Sharma: The Government is considering how the legislation on Higher Value Assets (HVA) could be implemented under the framework set out in the Housing and Planning Act 2016. Local authorities will not be expected to make an HVA payment in 2017/18.

Wales Office

Parking Offences: Wales

Nick Thomas-Symonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, whether the power to legislate to make parking on the pavement an offence in Wales is a reserved or devolved matter.

Alun Cairns: Road traffic offences are not devolved under the current conferred model of Welsh devolution, and will be reserved under the new reserved powers model which comes into effect on 1 April 2018. This means that whilst the National Assembly for Wales cannot legislate to make parking on the pavement a traffic offence it could legislate to make it a traffic contravention subject to civil enforcement.

HM Treasury

Customs Officers

Chuka Umunna: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of new customs officials that will be required as a result of leaving the Customs Union; and what the estimated additional annual cost to the public purse will be of employing those officials.

Mel Stride: HMRC are considering the capacity of staff working in customs across government as part of their EU exit planning. The staffing levels and resources required by HMRC after the UK leaves the European Union will be dependent on the outcome of negotiations.

Customs Declaration Services Programme

Chuka Umunna: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what contingency plans are in place in the event that the Customs Declaration Service is not fully operational before the UK is due to leave the EU in March 2019.

Mel Stride: The delivery of the new Customs Declaration Service (CDS) is on target, and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) expects to meet its planned delivery date in January 2019. The progress of the programme is subject to rigorous and ongoing internal scrutiny. Nevertheless, HMRC has robust contingency arrangements in place, including:- A transition process between August 2018 and January 2019 where traders will start moving to CDS.- Dual-running of the existing Customs Handling of Import and Export Freight (CHIEF) service with CDS.- Ensuring CHIEF can handle larger volumes of declarations.

Customs Declaration Services Programme

Chuka Umunna: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the new Customs Declaration Service will be fully operational by January 2019; and whether it will have been fully tested to ensure that it is able to manage any increase in the volume of declarations associated with leaving the Customs Union.

Mel Stride: The delivery of the new Customs Declaration Service (CDS) is on target, and HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) expects to meet its planned delivery date in January 2019. CDS is undergoing comprehensive testing to ensure that it can manage an increase in the volume of declarations. HMRC is following industry best practice in carrying out that work, by performance testing the individual software components first and gradually building up to test across the whole of the CDS system.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will publish the terms of reference of the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group is a cross-Whitehall group of senior officials set up by Permanent Secretaries. It does not report to the Chancellor directly. Its work is focussed on planning for border related EU exit issues. Further information about the Border Planning Group’s remit will be published on GOV.UK in due course.

Treasury: Trade Agreements

Kirsty Blackman: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many officials employed in his Department in June 2016 had substantial experience of international trade negotiation.

Andrew Jones: HM Treasury has a strong and capable trade policy function which has grown significantly over the past year. In particular we have a dedicated team working on trade policy as well as a team focused on international trade in Financial Services. HM Treasury continues to work closely with other government departments, including the Department for International Trade, to build a world class trade policy that can deliver the best outcomes for the UK.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether the Borders Planning Group has made any recommendations to date.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group made recommendations to ministers but the details will not be disclosed as these relate to the formulation or development of government policy and are ministerial communications.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many full-time equivalent officials report to the Borders Planning Group.

Mel Stride: The role of the Border Planning Group is to provide oversight of and assurance of departmental planning for border related issues arising from leaving the EU. The Border Coordination Team within HMRC supports the work of the Border Planning Group and reports into it. This team currently has 18 full time equivalent staff who work with the large number of different teams across Government departments working on border related EU exit matters.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, which Departments the Border Planning Group report to in addition to his Department.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group does not report to the Chancellor. The Border Planning Group is a group of senior cross-Whitehall officials, whose members report to their own ministers

Soft Drinks: Taxation

Justin Tomlinson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how much and what proportion of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy allocated to England is allocated for spending on school sports and healthy living initiatives.

Justin Tomlinson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent estimate his Department has made of the revenue accrued to the public purse from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy in each year from 2018 to 2022; and what proportion of that revenue will be allocated to (a) England and (b) the devolved administrations.

Justin Tomlinson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to make up in funding for his Department any shortfall from the Soft Drinks Industry Levy in the event that it accrues less revenue for the public purse than it was estimated to do; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: As published in Table 2.2 of the Spring Budget 2017, the levy is expected to raise approximately £385m per year from April 2018. This is less than originally expected at Budget 2016, reflecting the OBRs judgement that producers will reformulate a higher proportion of their products towards lower sugar content. In total, the Government has provided extra funding across the UK of almost £1.2 billion up to 2020, linked to the levy. This is split with almost £1 billion allocated to the Department for Education in England, and the remainder to the Devolved Administrations. The government is therefore committed to providing more funding to 2020 than the levy is forecast to raise, as the Chancellor guaranteed at Spring Budget 2017. Every penny of England’s share of the spending funded by the levy will continue to be spent on giving school-aged children a better and healthier future, including through doubling the Primary Sports Premium and providing extra funding for breakfast clubs. Whilst still meeting this commitment, the Secretary of State for Education announced in July that she would reprioritise £315m in healthy pupils capital funding, redirecting it to core schools funding. This is a major boost for our schools. DfE’s overall budget has not been cut and there has been no change to funding for the Devolved Administrations as a result of this reprioritisation.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group was established.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group was formally established with its inaugural meeting on 29 March 2017.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group held its first meeting.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group was formally established with its inaugural meeting on 29 March 2017.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, who the current members of the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group are.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group is a cross-Whitehall group of senior officials set up by Permanent Secretaries. It is chaired by Permanent Secretaries and includes senior level (Director General and Director level) civil servants from all relevant Departments with responsibility for border related activities or policy.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group has (a) met on what dates and (b) plans to meet.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group has met six times since being established. The Group plans to meet on a monthly basis.

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2017 to Question 4611, whether Surge and Rapid Response Team staff receive training to the same standard as the Border Force staff they work alongside.

Mel Stride: Surge and Rapid Response Team staff conduct a restricted role compared to Border Force Officers. They work at primary control points checking passports. Surge and Rapid Response Team staff undertake the same training programme and proficiency test procedures as all Border Force seasonal workers.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when the next meeting of the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group will take place.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group’s next meeting is scheduled for 11 November 2017

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 20 July 2017 to Question 4611, whether HM Revenue and Customs charges Border Force the full cost, including VAT, for the provision of staff providing assistance.

Mel Stride: With any deployment undertaken by the Surge and Rapid Response Team (SRRT), HM Revenue and Customs charge the full direct cost including VAT. Any Travel and Subsistence costs incurred on the deployment are also re-charged.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what annual budget has been allocated to the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group is a cross-Whitehall group of senior officials set up by Permanent Secretaries. The role of the Border Planning Group is to provide oversight of and assurance of departmental planning for border related issues arising from leaving the EU. The Border Coordination Team within HMRC supports the work of the Border Planning Group and reports into it. The budget for this team for 2017-18 is £2.5m. There are a large number of different teams across Government departments (including other teams in HMRC) working on border related EU exit matters for which funding will be within individual departmental budgets.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what contribution the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group has made to the Autumn Budget 2017.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group is a cross-Whitehall group of senior officials set up by Permanent Secretaries. The Border Planning Group’s role is to provide oversight and assurance of departmental plans for border related impacts of leaving the EU. The Border Planning Group does not report to the Chancellor and it has not contributed directly to the Autumn Budget 2017. Some individuals on it will have been involved in the Autumn Budget process.

Border Planning Group

Charlie Elphicke: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will place in the Library a copy of the minutes of the HM Revenue and Customs Border Planning Group meetings.

Mel Stride: The Border Planning Group’s minutes will not be released as these relate to the formulation or development of government policy.

Revenue and Customs: Apprentices

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 112 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, how much was paid by HMRC to its apprenticeship training providers via its apprenticeship service account in each month since April 2017.

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 112 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, how much was paid in apprenticeship levy by HMRC in each month since April 2017.

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 112 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, how many apprentices are employed by HMRC in each nation of the UK.

Mel Stride: Since April 2016, 1,824 staff have started their apprenticeships in HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) either through being recruited as apprentices or by existing staff taking up an apprenticeship. Apprenticeship starts by nation is as follows: NationApprenticeship starts% of apprenticeship startsEngland1,30471%Scotland24313%Wales27515%Northern Ireland2 Total1,824   As an employer with a pay bill in excess of £3m pa, HMRC pays 0.5% of its pay bill into the apprenticeship levy on a monthly basis. This equates to monthly payments of: MonthApr 17May 17Jun 17Jul 17Aug 17Sept 17Total£’000sN/A7437477487947483,780  The digital apprenticeship service account went live in May 2017. It is the responsibility of the learning providers to draw down funding from the Digital Account. HMRC has been working with providers and the first payments have been made in October. MonthApr 17May 17Jun 17Jul 17Aug 17Sept 17Oct 17Total£000000286*286* Data as of 12 October 2017

Revenue and Customs: Work Experience

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 112 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, how many people on Movement to Work placements during 2016-17 went on to secure employment with HMRC.

Mel Stride: 26 people on Movement to Work placements during this period went on to secure employment with HMRC

Revenue and Customs: Work Experience

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 112 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, whether people on Movement to Work placements are able to access personal data relating to taxpayers or recipients of tax credits.

Mel Stride: Participants do not have direct access to personal data relating to taxpayers or recipients of tax credits.

Revenue and Customs: Disciplinary Proceedings

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 113 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, whether staff subject to formal warnings under the attendance management policy submit and progress appeals in accordance with the provisions set out in paragraph 4.515 of the Civil Service Management Code.

Mel Stride: In line with the requirements of the Civil Service Management Code, an employee subject to formal warnings under the attendance management policy has a right of appeal at each formal decision point of the attendance management process. The HMRC appeals procedure is available to all employees via their intranet and clearly sets out the process and route via an impartial appeal manager.

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many employees of HM Revenue and Customs are non-UK EEA nationals in each pay grade.

Mel Stride: The number of HMRC employees that are non-UK EEA nationals broken down by grade is given in the table below AAAOOHOBand TSOG7G6SCS22461188219324282

Revenue and Customs: Sick Leave

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2017 to Question 5903, what the average cost to the public purse of a referral for occupational health advice is.

Mel Stride: The average cost of a standard referral for occupational health advice in HMRC is £55.63

Revenue and Customs: Disciplinary Proceedings

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 113 of the HM Revenue and Customs Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, whether staff subject to formal warnings under the attendance management policy submit and progress appeals in accordance with the provisions set out in paragraphs 26 to 29 of the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures.

Mel Stride: In line with the requirements of the ACAS Code of Practice on Disciplinary and Grievance Procedures, an employee subject to formal warnings under the attendance management policy has a right of appeal at each formal decision point of the attendance management process. The HMRC appeals procedure is available to all employees via the HMRC intranet and clearly sets out the process and route via an impartial appeal manager.

Revenue and Customs: Work Experience

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 112 of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, whether people on Movement to Work placements undertake work tasks that are also undertaken by employees of HMRC.

Mel Stride: The programme aims to give participants an opportunity to increase their employability skills and gain office experience. Experience is gained through shadowing, coaching, and undertaking supervised activities alongside HMRC employees. These activities will vary dependent on the Business Area hosting the participant.

Loans: Students

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to page 164 of the HM Revenue and Customs Annual Report and Accounts 2016-17, how frequently data on student loan recoveries made through the PAYE system using Real Time Information is passed to the Department for Education.

Mel Stride: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) provides the Department for Education (DFE) with a ‘statement of account’ three times a year which give an estimate of total receipts DFE can expect at the end of the year based on repayments of student loans made via the tax system. DFE does not receive any borrower repayment information.

Revenue and Customs: EU Nationals

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what support HM Revenue and Customs provides to the HMRC EU Nationals Network.

Mel Stride: The HMRC EU Nationals Network is sponsored by two HMRC directors who are actively engaged in supporting the Network objectives.

Civil Servants: Codes of Practice

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what use HM Revenue and Customs makes of the Civil Service Management Code when formulating its personnel policy.

John McDonnell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what role does the Civil Service Management Code play in the determination of human resources policy in HM Revenue and Customs.

Mel Stride: HMRC ensures that its HR policies, procedures and practices are consistent with the regulations and conditions set out in the Civil Service Management Code.

Data Protection: EU Law

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what work is being undertaken by HM Revenue and Customs in respect of the General Data Protection Regulation.

Mel Stride: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has a project underway looking at the business readiness for the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which will be become law on 25 May 2018. It has appointed a Data Protection Officer, which is a mandatory position in public authorities, whose role is to advise HMRC on the actions necessary to ensure GDPR compliance, act as a first point of contact for regulators and for individuals whose data is processed.

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Chris Stephens: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether non-UK EEA nationals employed by HM Revenue and Customs will be subject to changes to their terms and conditions of employment after the UK leaves the EU.

Mel Stride: HMRC will follow the UK government policy on how to treat non-UK EEA national employees following the departure of the UK from the EU.

Coinage

Chi Onwurah: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to each new coin introduced into circulation in the last 30 years, what has been the period between its introduction and its predecessor being no longer legal tender.

Andrew Jones: The period between the introduction of a new coin and its predecessor being demonetised, over the last 30 years, has ranged between 6-8 months. The new 10p was introduced on 30 September 1992, and its predecessor (the florin) was demonetised on 30 June 1993, co-circulating for eight months. The new 5p was introduced on 27 June, and its predecessor was demonetised on 31 December 1990, six months later. The new, smaller 50p was introduced on 1 September 1997. Its larger predecessor was demonetised on 28 February 1998, after a period of six months. The new £1 coin was introduced on 28 March 2017 and was demonetised six months later on 15 October 2017

Cabinet Office

Electoral Register

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the UK voter registration system.

Chris Skidmore: The most recent formal assessment of register quality, based on the 1 December 2015 registersand published in July 2016, found that individual electoral registration boosted the accuracy of theregister by 4 per centAlongside individual registration, the successful introduction of online registration has transformedthe way citizens can register. It now takes just a few minutes to apply to register and nearly 30million citizens have taken the opportunity to do so in the last three years. In large part thanks toonline registration, the parliamentary register used for the 2017 general election was the largestever at nearly 47 million2.9 million applications were submitted between the calling of the election and the registrationdeadline date, with 622,000 applications coming on deadline day itselfThe government has continued to modernise the registration process and to make it moreaccessible, as underscored, for example by recent policy commitments on making it easier forsurvivors of domestic abuse to register anonymously.

Electoral Register: Disclosure of Information

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the timetable is to bring forward proposals to improve data-sharing in the voter registration process.

Chris Skidmore: Electoral Returning Officers (EROs) already have wide powers to access data to improvethe quality of the register. The Cabinet Office is working with administrators and theirrepresentatives and the Electoral Commission to investigate additional potential use ofdata to aid EROs in their registration duties.

Electoral Register

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will conduct a review of all election and electoral registration deadlines which includes the consideration of deadlines for the registration of electors, overseas electors and absent voting.

Chris Skidmore: The Government keeps elections processes and policy under review and Cabinet Officeofficials are actively discussing timetables and other processes with the Association ofElectoral Administrators and the Electoral Commission to understand the issues andidentify practicable solutions that put electors first.

Elections: ICT

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the (a) current use of electronic forms of electoral counting and (b) potential merits of introducing such electronic forms of counting for other types of elections.

Chris Skidmore: Electronic counting is used in only a small number of polls. However, in consideringwhether to extend the use of electronic counting, we would need to take into account thecost, accuracy and integrity of adopting it more widely. In previous polls electronic countinghas been more expensive and has not been as quick as expected in some circumstancesWe therefore currently have no plans to further its use.

Elections: Costs

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will take steps to ensure that all costs properly incurred in (a) the administration of elections, including electoral registration costs directly attributable to the election, are reimbursed to returning officers and their employing local authorities and (b) delivering electoral registration are automatically provided to local authorities without the need to revert to the justification-led bidding process.

Chris Skidmore: The process for reimbursing properly incurred costs for electoral events is overseen by theElection Claims Unit. Once claims have been received and properly scrutinised, expensesnecessarily incurred for the effective and efficient delivery of the poll will be reimbursedThe Election Claims Unit aims to settle claims within 12 months of them being received.The majority of electoral registration activity is funded by local authorities across England,Scotland and Wales. The law does not allow for claims for electoral events to include costsof electoral registration.

General Election 2017

Martyn Day: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the findings of the report, Turned Out 2017, published by the RNIB on problems experienced by blind and partially sighted voters at the 2017 General Election; and if he will implement that report's recommendations before local authority elections take place in 2018.

Chris Skidmore: I welcome the report by the RNIB on the experiences of blind and partially sighted peopleat the 2017 General Election. The Government will consider these recommendations aspart of our current Call for Evidence on the experience of disabled people in registering tovote and voting and will look at the evidence as a whole in planning how to take forwardany changes.

Cabinet Office: Government Chief Scientific Adviser

Norman Lamb: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many meetings he has had with the Government Chief Scientific Adviser in the last three months.

Damian Green: The First Secretary has not had meetings with the Government Chief Scientific Adviser inthe last three months.

Ovarian Hyperstimulation Syndrome

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many women have died from ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome in each year since 2011.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. Ihave asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA response
(PDF Document, 65.85 KB)

Electoral Register

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent comparable assessment the Government has made in the volume of guidance produced by the Electoral Commission for the registration of UK citizens overseas and the registration of homeless people; and whether his Department plans to review such guidance.

Chris Skidmore: The Government has not made any assessment of the volume of Electoral Commissionguidance since this is a matter for the Electoral Commission.

Personation

Cat Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many cases of impersonation took place in each parliamentary constituency and local authority in each of the last seven years.

Chris Skidmore: This Government is committed to creating a clear and secure democracy that works foreveryone and, as part of this, wants to ensure that fraud is stamped out in elections. Anyinstance of electoral fraud is one instance too many.The Electoral Commission publishes annual analysis of electoral fraud on their website:http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/find-information- by-subject/electoral- fraud/data-and-analysis?Further breakdown and analysis of information on electoral fraud is available in thereports.

Employment: Bolton West

Chris Green: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of the working population of Bolton West constituency is employed in the (a) public and (b) private sector.

Chris Skidmore: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. Ihave asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA response
(PDF Document, 142.03 KB)

Local Government: Elections

Chris Green: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which local authorities have expressed interest to his Department in conducting a voter ID pilot in polling stations for the May 2018 local elections.

Chris Skidmore: The May 2018 voter ID pilot schemes are part of a programme of reform that will enhancepublic confidence in our elections and strengthen electoral integrity. The opportunity topilot voter ID in May 2018 was offered to all local authorities in Great Britain and on 16September we announced that Woking, Gosport, Bromley and Watford have committed todo so. In addition, Tower Hamlets will be piloting measures to improve the integrity of thepostal vote process.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade: USA

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the cost to his Department was of producing the July 2017 report entitled UK trade and investment highlights in the 435 US Congressional districts.

Greg Hands: The “UK Trade and Investment Highlights in the 435 US Congressional districts” report was developed as a tool to build support for further strengthening the UK-US trading relationship.There was no direct cost to the Department for International Trade for producing the report.The report is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/631648/congressional_report_print.pdf

Police: Ethiopia

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how much of his Department's financial assistance to Ethiopia is dedicated to be passed on to Ethiopian (a) police or security forces and (b) organisations that have oversight over that country's police or security forces.

Mark Garnier: The Department for International Trade has not provided any financial assistance to Ethiopia that is dedicated to be passed on to Ethiopian (a) police or security forces and (b) organisations that have oversight over that country's police or security forces.

Trade Agreements

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how the Government plans to negotiate and sign new trade deals while still operating within an interim customs arrangement with the EU and while the UK's future trading relationship with the EU remains undecided.

Greg Hands: As part of seeking a time-limited interim period with the EU, the UK would intend to pursue new trade negotiations with other countries during this period. It would not bring into effect any new arrangements with third countries which were not consistent with the terms of the interim agreement.

Antidumping

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what plans he has to replicate EU Anti-dumping legislation when the UK leaves the EU.

Greg Hands: Once the UK has exited the EU, we will be able to operate our own independent trade policy. As part of this, the Government is committed to establishing an effective trade remedies system to provide a safety net for domestic producers if dumping, subsidisation or unexpected surges of imports cause injury.Our ambition is to not just replace the current EU system, but to put in place a framework that will work for the UK.

UK-US Trade and Investment Working Group

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 15 September 2017 to Question 9154, if he will publish the agenda of the plenary session of the first meeting of UK-US Trade and Investment Working Group that he chaired in July 2017.

Greg Hands: The initial meeting of the UK-US Trade and Investment Working Group, including the plenary session chaired by my Rt. Hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade and the US Trade Representative, Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, discussed a range of trade issues This included ensuring commercial continuity for business as the UK leaves the EU, exploring possible ways to strengthen trade and commercial ties consistent with the EU's common commercial policy, and preparing the ground for a potential future trade agreement once the UK leaves the EU.

Trade Agreements: Immigration Controls

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on lowering the UK's visa restrictions in the context of negotiating future trade deals with other countries.

Greg Hands: My Rt Hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade, regularly discusses trade policy issues with Cabinet colleagues, including my Rt Hon Friend the Home Secretary. This includes looking at how UK domestic policies can support the UK’s trade agenda.

Exports

Mr Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of export opportunities for the UK in non-EU countries.

Mark Garnier: The Department for International Trade (DIT) runs nearly 200 export High Value Campaigns, across a range of countries, the majority being non-EU, focusing government resources where they add the most value for the benefit of the whole of the UK. Since the election in June, DIT has been reviewing its exports strategy which partners across the world working closely with the FCO and DfID to look beyond traditional markets to support wider government objectives.

Foreign Investment in UK

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of what constitutes good practice in attracting foreign direct investment to the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Garnier: The Department is committed to building a global Britain which champions free trade, where the government plays an important role in supporting trade and investment. Our objective is to focus HMG support to those foreign direct investment projects which will maximise wealth creation across the country. Alongside other government departments we are developing proposals in the HMG Industrial Strategy White paper that will improve the business environment for investment and align support to investments likely to have the greatest impact to the UK economy.

Department for International Trade: Staff

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many civil servants in his Department speak fluent (a) Mandarin, (b) Arabic, (c) Japanese and (d) Spanish.

Greg Hands: The Department for International Trade does not currently hold central data on the language skills of its workforce. Nevertheless, its workforce of over 3400 people operates successfully in over 108 markets. This requires a range of linguistic skills and abilities, especially in our overseas posts, which form part of the UK mission to that country.

Department for International Trade: Staff

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many civil servants in his Department previously worked for the European Commission on trade negotiations.

Greg Hands: The information requested is not held centrally.

World Trade Organisation

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether his Department has carried out any contingency planning for what happens if the UK leaves the EU without having reached an agreement at the WTO over the UK’s quota schedules.

Greg Hands: The UK, as a full and founding World Trade Organization (WTO) member, already has agreed schedules of commitments for goods and services, by virtue of our membership of the European Union. We are not seeking to change the substance of those commitments although they will need updating for our independent membership, including Tariff Rate Quotas. We aim to have certified UK-only goods and services schedules of commitments by the point of EU exit. However, were it to take some time for these schedules to be certified, having uncertified schedules for a period would not hinder our ability to trade under them.

Department for International Trade: Staff

Mr Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, how many civil servants in his Department have direct previous experience of negotiating a free trade agreement.

Greg Hands: The information requested is not held centrally.

Department for International Development: Travel

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to DIT Ministerial Quarterly Transparency Returns, published on 13 October 2017, on which international journeys undertaken by (a) him, (b) the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Investment, (c) the Minister of State for Trade and Export Promotion and (d) the Minister of State for Trade Policy were (i) economy, (ii) business, (iii) first and (iv) any other class were used.

Greg Hands: Holding answer received on 19 October 2017



Ministers in the Department for International Trade abide by Cabinet Office rules on international travel. These state that any journey over 5 hours in duration can be made in Business Class, while others should be made in Economy Class.

Bombardier: USA

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, which members of the US Senate he has met to discuss the trade dispute between Boeing and Bombardier.

Greg Hands: Holding answer received on 19 October 2017



Since April 2017, Ministers across government together with officials have engaged with senior officials in the US administration and lawmakers, alongside engagement with the Canadian administration, and at Bombardier in Canada and Belfast.

Trade Agreements

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, whether the Government is able to guarantee that new trade deals with third-party countries at least match the value of trade lost by leaving the Customs Union.

Greg Hands: Holding answer received on 19 October 2017



As we leave the EU, the government is committed to ensuring that UK and EU businesses and consumers can continue to trade freely with one another. The UK will seek to agree a time-limited implementation period with the EU, during which access to one another’s markets should continue on current terms. This would help to minimise unnecessary disruption and provide certainty for businesses and individuals in the UK and the EU.The UK will look to secure greater access to overseas markets for UK goods exports after leaving the EU as well as push for greater liberalisation of global services, investment and procurement markets.

Military Aircraft: Slovakia

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what representations he has made to his Slovak counterpart on that country's procurement of a replacement for the L39 aircraft.

Mark Garnier: My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for International Trade has made no representations to his Slovak counterpart on the procurement of a replacement for the L39 aircraft. The Department for International Trade’s Defence and Security Organisation has been involved in the replacement procurement process.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Sports: Discrimination

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what information her Department holds on cases of discrimination on the basis of (a) race, (b) gender and (c) sexual orientation in elite sport.

Tracey Crouch: The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport does not hold any information on cases of discrimination in elite sport. Although UK Sport does not hold disaggregated data on discrimination, since 2013, UK Sport has received two complaints on the basis of race discrimination (one of which was related to grassroots sport), one gymnastics-related complaint on the basis of gender, and multiple cycling-related complaints on the basis of gender against a cycling coach's alleged comments to a female rider. UK Sport has received no complaints regarding sexual orientation.There is no place for racism, sexism, homophobia or any other kind of discrimination in sport. Tackling discrimination lies at the heart of the cross-government sport strategy "Sporting Future" and we want sport to be at the forefront of equality. Government continues to work with National Governing Bodies and organisations such as Kick It Out, Stonewall and Women in Football to tackle discrimination in local, national and international sport. Our aim is to increase diversity among sporting organisations and to help the sport sector be more inclusive and welcoming to its spectators, participants and people in its workforce. Our Code for Sport Governance stipulates that funded sporting organisations should publish information about their work to foster all aspects of diversity within their leadership and decision-making.

Gaming Machines: Ellesmere Port and Neston

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, if she will estimate the amount spent each year on fixed-odds betting terminals in Ellesmere Port and Neston constituency.

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many fixed-odds betting terminals are licensed in Ellesmere Port and Neston constituency.

Tracey Crouch: Neither the Department nor the Gambling Commission hold information concerning the number of Fixed-Odds Betting Terminals and, therefore spend, on Fixed-Odds Betting Terminals in individual constituencies.

Battle of Cambrai: Anniversaries

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to mark the centenary of the Battle of Cambrai; and if she will make a statement.

John Glen: Whilst the Government has no plans to deliver a specific event to commemorate the Battle of Cambrai, the Royal Tank Regiment (RTR) will be commemorating the centenary of the battle over the weekend of 24 to 26 November, with a series of events for both serving and former members of the Regiment. They will include a Drumhead service at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission's Louverval Military Cemetery and a parade through Cambrai to mark the Regiment’s Freedom of the Town.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Government Property Unit

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2017 to Question 105820, if she will make public applications made to the Government property unit to extend or renew their lets in each year since 2012 which were granted with conditions attached to them; and what the conditions were in each case.

Matt Hancock: The Department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport has made no applications to Government Property Unit to extend or renew any lets since 2012. Information on our Arm’s Length Bodies’ applications is not held centrally and to obtain it would incur a disproportionate cost.

National Lottery: Grants

Ian C. Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many applications for National Lottery funding have been made by parliamentary constituency in each of the last three years.

Tracey Crouch: The department does not hold information on applications for funding from National Lottery distributing bodies. The department does maintain a database for all grants that have been awarded, which can be searched by constituency level. This database can be found at: www.lottery.culture.gov.uk.

Video Games: Regulation

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the regulation of the video games industry.

Matt Hancock: We are committed to protecting children from inappropriate content in video games. The supply of video games on physical media in the UK is regulated under the Video Recordings Act 1984. In 2012 the Government strengthened this law so that any such games must be referred to the VSC Rating Board for a Pegi age rating if they are unsuitable for children. A retailer convicted of supplying a game to someone not meeting the Pegi 12, 16 or 18 age requirement risks a fine or jail sentence. The Pegi ratings are also voluntarily applied by industry to many games and apps made available online. On 11 October 2017 we published our Internet Safety Strategy Green Paper, setting out our plans to make the UK the safest place in the world to be online. This includes how we will work with online platforms, game publishers and game developers and with agencies such as the VSC Rating Board to continue to improve online safety in games.

Gambling: Prosecutions

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many prosecutions under the Gambling Act 2005 there have been in each of the last five years.

Tracey Crouch: The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates’ courts for offences under the Gambling Act 2005 in England and Wales, in each year between 2012 and 2016, can be viewed in the attached table.



Gambling Act 2005 offences 2012-2016
(PDF Document, 100.25 KB)

Department of Health

Autism: Diagnosis

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress the Government has made on implementation of the recommendations of the working group on autism on the time taken to diagnose autism.

Jackie Doyle-Price: There is no formal working group currently looking specifically at the time taken for an autism diagnosis to be made. Information on current waiting times for an autism assessment is drawn from the Public Health England report of the 2016 Self-Assessment Framework exercise. The Department continues to work with its partners to address long waiting times for an autism diagnosis. This includes work to ensure the inclusion of autism diagnosis and outcomes indicators in the Mental Health Services Dataset, with new robust data collected from 1 April 2018. This will bring more transparency and help to drive up performance on waiting times.

NHS: Managers

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will publish the list of (a) invitees and (b) attendees for the meeting of NHS leaders on 18 September 2017; and what criteria was used to select those invitees.

Mr Philip Dunne: The system leaders from the most challenged systems on Accident and Emergency were invited to attend the meeting on 18 September 2017. The Chairs and Chief Executives of the relevant trusts and the Chairs and Accounting Officers of the relevant clinical commissioning groups were invited.

Health Services: Procurement

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many agreements have been signed by clinical commissioning groups which are not subject to the tariff system.

Mr Philip Dunne: Information is available on the number of local variation templates received by NHS Improvement and can be found in the table below.YearNumber of local variation templates2014/151862015/162782016/17106Notes:Local variations are adjustments to a national price or a currency, agreed by one or more commissioner and one or more provider. Variations can vary in scope from single procedures to groups of services.

NHS: Managers

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will publish the (a) agenda and (b) minutes of his meeting with NHS leaders on 18 September 2017.

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the NHS leaders meeting that he attended on 18 September 2017.

Mr Philip Dunne: The agenda of the meeting my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health attended on 18 September 2017 is provided below. No minutes were taken of this meeting. National NHS leaders regularly meet regional leaders to discuss operational matters. This is a normal part of business. 10:00Arrival and registrationSpeaker10:15Welcome and PurposePauline Philip, National Director For Urgent and Emergency Care10:25Keynote SpeechJeremy Hunt MP, Secretary of State for Health10:45National Expectations of Boards and CEOsJim Mackey, Chief Executive, NHS Improvement Simon Stevens, Chief Executive, NHS England11:15Best Practice Presentations from Trusts 12:10Accident and emergency and Care Quality CommissionDavid Behan, Chief Executive, Care Quality Commission12:20Outline of winter operations function and expectations of winter planningNational Director For and Urgent Emergency Care12:30Lunch 13:30Regional working sessionsLed by NHS England and NHS Improvement Regional Directors16:00Close

Organs: Donors

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what safeguards will be put in place to ensure that the Government's policy for opt-out for organ donation does not contravene the religious beliefs of those who may not have opted out.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We have announced that we will launch a 12 week consultation, before the end of this year, on increasing rates of organ donation, including a new “opt out” system of consent for England. The consultation will seek views on: - How to increase rates of organ donation, particularly from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic communities;- How the issue of consent should be managed within the National Health Service;- How technology could help people to discuss their preferences with family; and- How opt out could work in practice, the safeguards needed and how families could be supported. The major religions in the United Kingdom support the idea of organ donation and transplantation. However, the Government will carefully consult, listen and take account of the views from people from a diverse range of ethnic, religious and cultural communities when considering any changes to the law. We are still committed to campaigns to raise awareness, and encourage families and friends to discuss their wishes on organ donation. More information about religious views and principles on organ donation can be found at:http://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/about-donation/what-does-my-religion-say/

Homelessness

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the process is for helping people with no fixed abode and no identification documents seeking an ordinary residence determination.

Mr Philip Dunne: Entitlement to free National Health Service care is principally based on being ‘ordinarily resident’ in the United Kingdom. Broadly, this means living here on a lawful and properly settled basis for the time being, with non-European Economic Area nationals subject to immigration control also being required to have an immigration status of ‘indefinite leave to remain’. Overseas visitors, who are not ordinarily resident in the UK, are chargeable for NHS care unless an exemption applies. There is no one single identification document that is required to be presented as evidence of ordinary residence. Guidance to NHS decision makers includes a tool with which to assess whether a person is likely to be ordinarily resident in the UK. This makes clear that a person of no fixed abode may still be considered ordinarily resident here, and the NHS should work collaboratively with the patient and consider all the facts of their circumstances in making an ordinarily resident determination. As regards whether or not a person has indefinite leave to remain in the UK, NHS staff may request this information from the Home Office, solely to assist them in making the ordinarily resident determination.

NHS: Tyne and Wear

Mr Stephen Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the financial sustainability of NHS services in (a) Tyne and Wear and (b) South Tyneside.

Mr Philip Dunne: The National Health Service leadership bodies have developed their own plan for delivering financial balance and sustainability for the NHS. We support that plan and have invested in the NHS to do so, with funding set to increase by £8 billion per year by 2020-21 compared to 2015-16. But it is for local leaders in Sustainability and Transformation Partnership (STP) areas, working together with NHS England and NHS Improvement, to deliver against their own plans to achieve financial sustainability. We are keenly aware that local issues exist within the national plan, but as with all public services, local NHS areas need to live within their means. NHS England and NHS Improvement will continue to work with areas to balance their financial plans. Progress is being made. The NHS has worked hard to manage its finances in a challenging period, reporting significant improvements compared to previous years. Nationally, the overall deficit, the size of individual deficits and the number of trusts reporting a deficit, are all significantly down.We are advised that the financial position of the Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and North Durham STP footprint (which includes both South Tyneside NHS Foundation Trust and the broader Tyne and Wear region) is deteriorating versus 2016-17, although Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust and Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust are predicted to maintain a substantial, if reduced, surplus.

Medical Treatments: Innovation

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to promote opportunities for patients to participate in clinical research; and if he will make a statement.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The development of new and better treatments would not be possible without patients and the public taking part in research, and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is committed to their active involvement in National Health Service, public health and social care research. In 2015/16, more than 605,000 people participated in clinical research studies through the NIHR Clinical Research Network. INVOLVE, the NIHR’s national advisory group on patient and public involvement in research, help members of the public to advise on NIHR research, helps to identify and prioritise research topics, assess funding proposals, and carry out and disseminate findings. INVOLVE is also at the forefront of a growing international public involvement movement seeking to collectively promote and advance public involvement in health and social care research around the world. The Government also supports the work of the James Lind Alliance, which brings patients, carers, clinicians and medical research charities together to identify and prioritise research topics. In addition, we fund the UK Clinical Trials Gateway and Join Dementia Research to enable patients and clinicians to find out about clinical trials that may be of interest to them.

Department of Health: Government Property Unit

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2017 to Question 105820, if he will make public applications made to the Government property unit to extend or renew their lets in each year since 2012 which were granted with conditions attached to them; and what the conditions were in each case.

Mr Philip Dunne: In line with Cabinet Office Controls guidance the Department publishes data with regard to each application for new or extension to leases on the GOV.UK website link:https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/exceptions-to-spending-moratoriaThe Department is not able to publish the detail of each application and the conditions for each application as this contains commercially sensitive information.

Continuing Care: Fees and Charges

Bob Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many Continuing Healthcare claims for repayment of fees paid were outstanding in each of the last 12 months.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Payment for an NHS Continuing Healthcare ‘previously unassessed period of care’ is only made for cases assessed as eligible. As described in a public letter from the former NHS Chief Executive Sir David Nicholson, dated 15 March 2012, deadlines were introduced for requests for an assessment for a NHS Continuing Healthcare ‘previously unassessed period of care’ between 1 April 2004 and 31 March 2012. The number of requests for a NHS Continuing Healthcare ‘previously unassessed period of care’ between 1 April 2004 and 31 March 2012 that were outstanding at the end of the previous 12 months are as follows: MonthRequests outstandingSeptember 20170August 20170July 20170June 20170May 20170April 20173March 201722February 201778January 2017178December 2016607November 2016901October 20161,498 Information is not held on the number of outstanding requests for an assessment for an NHS Continuing Healthcare ‘previously unassessed period of care’ from April 2012 onwards.

Mental Health Services: Children

Bambos Charalambous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to address the variation in spending between clinical commissioning groups on mental health services for children.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are responsible for spending on services based upon the needs of the population they serve. Implementing the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health is available at:https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/fyfv-mh.pdfand sets out the additional funding going to CCGs in aggregate, year on year, for children and young people’s mental health services. CCGs are able to use this information to determine the additional amount they have locally. All areas are expected to outline how they plan to spend their increased resources in their Local Transformation Plans which should be updated each year. NHS England has published spend data on the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health dashboard at:https://www.england.nhs.uk/mental-health/taskforce/imp/mh-dashboard/

Dentistry: Resignations

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies on dental services of the British Dental Association's press release of 1 October 2017 on the number of dentists intending to leave NHS dentistry.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Government is committed to supporting dentists and National Health Service dental services. NHS England is responsible for commissioning primary care dental services. It advises that it has not had any widespread reports of difficulty nationally in contracting dental providers to deliver NHS care. In 2016/17, 3,847 more dentists worked in the NHS than were working in the NHS when the current contract started in 2006/ 2007.

Junior Doctors

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what representations he has received from the medical profession on changing the job title Junior Doctor; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Department received correspondence from Professor David R. Matthews of the Oxford Health Alliance regarding his campaign calling for a change in the use of the term ‘Junior Doctor’. Professor Matthews launched his campaign on 10 October. The Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies provided the following quote: “We need modern names for a modern NHS. The current terms of ‘trainee’ and ‘junior’ doctors have been in place for a decade, covering clinicians with a wide range of experience and expertise. These titles do not seem to work for either the staff or the patients. “There is no easy solution to this, but I think it is important that all healthcare workers get the respect they deserve – and this should include how their jobs are described.”

Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and Human Tissue Authority Review

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has fully implemented recommendations 10 and 11 on ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome of the 2013 Review of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and the Human Tissue Authority.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised it has fully implemented all the recommendations in the 2013 review. Recommendation 10 was addressed through the HFEA’s 2014-17 strategy, in particular the commitment to ‘improve the quality and safety of care through our regulatory activities’. In relation to ovarian hyper-stimulation syndrome (OHSS), the HFEA is working with professional organisations and NHS Digital to understand OHSS hospital admissions data, ensure that clinics are complying with existing guidance from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and to explore where new guidance for clinics is needed. Recommendation 11 required the HFEA to clarify how it cooperates with the Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, which was subsequently done, but this recommendation did not refer to OHSS.

Marie Stopes International

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he has taken in response to the Care Quality Commission reports of its inspections of Marie Stopes International published in December 2016.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspections raised serious concerns about compliance by Marie Stopes International (MSI) clinics with requirements set by the Department and the CQC. MSI are continuing to take a range of actions to address the issues identified in the CQC’s reports. The CQC re-inspected MSI earlier this year and have made clear that they will not hesitate to take further action, if necessary, in order to guarantee MSI meets the standard of care they expect and that its patients deserve. The Department continues to monitor the situation with particular regard being had to the statutory approval responsibilities of the Secretary of State.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to ensure that all termination of pregnancy providers record patient NHS numbers on HSA1 and HSA4 forms.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether termination of pregnancy providers have a duty to record the NHS numbers of their patients.

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the reason is for pregnancy providers not recording the NHS number of patients undergoing abortions.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Recording of National Health Service numbers is a matter for termination of pregnancy providers and their commissioners. Registered medical practitioners are already legally required to provide either the woman’s NHS number, her hospital reference number or her name on the HSA4 form. The Government has no plans to require the collection of NHS numbers on the HSA1 form.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will make it his policy to collect data on post-abortion complications as a result of treatment at (a) private and (b) NHS abortion providers.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Data on abortion complications are already collected through HSA4 forms submitted to the Chief Medical Officer.

Abortion

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to ensure that the General Medical Council releases papers on the pre-signing of HSA1 certificates by doctors to the police for investigation under the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and Perjury Act 1911.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The General Medical Council (GMC) is independent of Government. The release of papers held by the GMC on the pre-signing of HSA1 certificates by doctors, is a matter for the GMC and the police.

Secure Psychiatric Units

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been detained in locked rehabilitation wards in England in each year since 2010.

Barbara Keeley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people have been detained in locked rehabilitation wards outside their local area in each year since 2010.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is not collected centrally.

Transvaginal Mesh Implants

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps the Government is taking to assist those affected by complications relating to transvaginal mesh implants.

Jackie Doyle-Price: NHS England’s Mesh Oversight Group published its final report in July 2017. This outlined actions and recommendations to address the three major areas of concern identified by patients and experts - clinical quality, data and information, and informed consent.Work continues on implementation, and a number of early actions have been taken, including the provision of patient information leaflets to support decision-making, learning resources for general practitioners, and the designation of 18 National Health Service trusts as specialist centres to identify and treat complications. In addition, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has also advised those women who suffer ill effects as a result of these procedures to report them through the Yellow Card Scheme.